Ironman Cozumel

Mini Training Meltdown

August 27, 2012 by Asia

Answers.com defines a meltdown as “an emotional breakdown”

Urban Dictionary.com says a meltdown “describes what happens when a person freaks out, cracks, loses control of themselves. Life – reality at large – becomes overwhelming. They just can’t deal with it all. The person may act out, withdraw, become emotional, run, etc.”

Well, today I had my first Ironman training mini meltdown.

Due to a recent foot injury, I had the option of 2.5 hours of aqua jogging or 3 hours of elliptical instead of a normal long run. Shoot me, right? Well I decided elliptical was the way to go because I would access to music, books, tv, my iphone, you name it. I wouldn’t have access to any of those items during aqua jogging. Plus, the 2 pools I normally swim at were closed for maintenance. So, I made my decision and prepared 2 bottles of water, 3 GUs, various sources of entertainment, and headed to the gym. I was mentally prepared to spend 3 hours on the same damn machine from 5-8pm. It was going to happen. I was going to prove to myself (and my coach) that I had enough mental toughness to survive a mundane, boring, elliptical workout. (No offense if you actually like the elliptical.)

The second I started moving on the elliptical, however, I felt pain on the top inside of my right knee. Wtf!? This was the same spot I experienced my first bout of knee pain the second I got off the bike at IMCDA. I limped around for a few days, and then it went away. Then it came back during a couple of bike rides later. Trevor and I addressed it, and it went away. It has been gone for several weeks in fact, so to feel it again now on a machine I never even use just freaked me out.

I tried changing my foot position. I tried changing the resistance. I tried going faster. Slower. Forwards. Backwards. Nothing was working. I had constant knee pain. It didn’t hurt badly enough to make me stop, so I stayed on it longer than I should have. I got off and took a walk around 45 minutes into my session to see how it felt, and it didn’t feel any better. It still hurt when I got back on, so near tears, I finally called it a night. Trevor suggested aqua jogging, but I mandated self pity and rest.

Ironman Cozumel is less than 13 weeks away, so today I let that get to me, and I started to worry. I didn’t have any nagging injuries when I trained for Ironman Coeur d’Alene, so why are they surfacing now!? (It might have something to do with a lack of a break from training, and/or the large amount of stress I put on my body when I was training for IM#1…) I expressed my concerns to Trevor, and I came home and cried to Jeremy. (Just a little.) I iced my knee. I iced my foot. I drank some wine. I watched Grey’s Anatomy on HuluPlus. I attempted to REST. I wish I had gotten through that 3 hour training session, but sometimes rest is the best medicine.

Trevor said that looking ahead will only get me down at this point. I need to look at the week I’m in and make the most of it. We will build back up as fast as my body will allow. I still have a solid base from Ironman #1, and 12+ weeks is enough time to reach my goal of finishing Ironman Cozumel.

Positive thoughts!!

Still Ironman Training

August 21, 2012 by Asia

Have you been wondering what my workouts have been the past 4 weeks? Probably not 😉 but I’m used to posting weekly or bi-weekly about my sessions during Ironman training, so it’s time to catch up! I have still been training for Ironman Cozumel, and things with Coach Trevor have been going great! I’ve just had some mishaps along the way, unfortunately. I guess I’m surprised and lucky that nothing like this happened to me sooner since I’ve been training for so long, so I guess I am getting it out of my system now!

I’ll try to summarize the past 4 weeks. This time, instead of counting UP to how many weeks I’ve been training for my Ironman (too many), I’m counting DOWN to IMCZ! I can’t believe it’s only 14 weeks away! I know I always say this, but time flies…

#1 I got swimmer’s ear.

#2 I got in a bike crash.

#3 I have a foot injury.

All things considered, I am OK and still training in one form or another. After flipping over my handlebars, I am so lucky I didn’t break anything in my crash and that it won’t affect my performance at IMCZ. My foot pain just started on Friday so I’m going to see a physical therapist on Wednesday to get an assessment. The good news is that it has been improving with ice and rest, so I am optimistic!

19 Weeks until IMCZ – Solana Beach Sprint Triathlon / the week I was a fish

Monday 7/16: 60′ mobility work with Trevor in the morning, 60′ of technique swimming at JCC with Trevor after work

Tuesday 7/17: Easy spin 60′, swim 30′

Wednesday 7/18: Swim drills 3,000 yards for 90′, Group Strength Class 60′

Thursday 7/19: Swim drills 3,000 yards for 90′, Run 20′

Friday 7/20: YMCA Masters Swim 75′

Saturday 7/21: REST and triathlon expo

Sunday 7/22: Solana Beach Sprint Triathlon! My fun race and personal best: 68′ (swim 11′, bike 29′, run 23′)

Total Swim: 6 hours!
Total Bike: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Run: 45 minutes
Total Strength/Mobility: 2 hours
Total combined training: 10 hours 15 minutes

18 Weeks until IMCZ – Building the bike again / swimmer’s ear diagnosis

Monday 7/23: 60′ mobility work with Trevor

Tuesday 7/24: 30′ Swim, 75′ trail run
Trevor helped me discover the joys of trail running! I didn’t even realize there were trails 3 miles from my house. Nicole has come with me on a couple of these runs which makes it even more enjoyable (and safe!)

Wednesday 7/25: 60′ Swim on my own/worked on counting my strokes, Group Strength 60′ after work

Thursday 7/26: Found out I had swimmer’s ear, so got some ear drops and took a rest day. Must have been all that swimming last week (or just bad luck?)

Friday 7/27: Run 60′ with my training buddy, Nicole! Last 30′ negative split

Saturday 7/28: Bike 2 hours / Torrey Pines hill repeats
These are TOUGH. I was supposed to get out of the saddle halfway up the hill. I suck at staying out of the saddle.

Sunday 7/29: Bike 3 hours, 10′ run

Total Swim: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Bike: 5 hours
Total Run: 2 hours 25 minutes
Total Strength/Mobility: 2 hours
Total combined training: 11 hours

17 Weeks until IMCZ – Still building my bike

Monday 7/30: Nada (This is my rest day, and it typically incorporates mobility/stretching and/or swimming. This day it was purely a day off.)

Tuesday 7/31: YMCA Masters Swim 45′ (cut short per coach’s orders), Trail run 45′

Wednesday 8/1: Group Strength 60′

Thursday 8/2: Swim 3,500 yards for 1 hour 45 mins, Group strength plus tempo run for 75′
Trevor started a new group workout where we meet on at San Elijo trails in Solana Beach and do a combo of mobility, running strength movements, and tempo runs! It’s tough yet fun.

Friday 8/3: Spin 60′ before work, Spin 60′ after work

Saturday 8/4: 4 hour bike ride to Ramona
Jeremy came with me and had the pleasure of circling me on this ride since he is so much faster. There were a lot of hills, and I got to try a new route!

Sunday 8/5: 2 hour 10 min run with trails incorporated, 25′ ocean swim
Focused on cadence during my run and tried to keep it above 95. Ran into a snake which scared the crap out of me! By the time I got to my open water swim, I barely made it 25 minutes before calling it quits. (It was supposed to be a 45 min session.) The water was choppy and I was exhausted from 2 big workouts that weekend.

Total Swim: 3 hours
Total Bike: 6 hours
Total Run: 3 hours
Total Strength/Mobility: 2 hours
Total combined training: 14 hours

Post hospital visit. All cleaned up and on drugs.

16 Weeks until IMCZ – The week of my bike crash

Monday 8/6: 60′ mobility with Trevor, 60′ technique swim at JCC

Tuesday 8/7: 60′ bike —> bike crash 🙁

Wednesday 8/8: Rest and recovery day. Doped up on pain meds from the crash.

Thursday 8/9: Group strength on the trails. Slightly painful! Skipped the tempo run part.

Friday 8/10: Another rest and recovery day

Saturday 8/11: Spin 3 hours

Sunday 8/12: Run 2 hours (misery)

Total Swim: 1 hour (my wounds didn’t make swimming a smart idea for a few days)
Total Bike: 4 hours
Total Run: 2 hours
Total Strength/Mobility: 2 hours
Total combined training: 9 hours

15 Weeks until IMCZ – The week of my foot injury

Monday 8/13: 60′ mobility with Trevor, 30′ swim on my own

Tuesday 8/14: 60′ masters swim, 30′ easy run

Wednesday 8/15: 60′ taper repeats (run), 60′ group strength

Thursday 8/16: 1:15 trainer workout plus 10 minute transition run

Friday 8/17: 60′ ocean swim at La Jolla Cove. Negative split at the 20 and 40 minutes. Jeremy came with me because I refuse to go open water swimming alone! He would just swim ahead, swim back, and circle around me since we are nowhere near the same pace. Such a great boyfriend and training partner to put up with me!

Saturday 8/18: Swim and aqua jog! 20′ swim warmup with drills, 40′ aqua jog, 10′ cool down. Have you ever tried aqua jogging? It is slow and hard! Good way to practice mental toughness and get heart rate up.

Sunday 8/19: This was supposed to be my third AFC Half Marathon, but due to my foot injury, I sold my bib the day before the race and settled for a 45′ swim session practicing my technique instead. I was sad to miss out on another Team WODS race experience, but I know there will be more in the future. Sometimes you have to get over your ego and realize that rest is the best medicine.

Total Swim: 4 hours 20 min
Total Bike: 1 hour 15 minutes
Total Run: 1 hour 40 minutes
Total Strength/Mobility: 2 hours
Total combined training: 9 hours 20 min

Have you experienced any rough patches during training for your “A race”? How did you overcome them?

Bad Things Come in Threes

August 18, 2012 by Asia

Bad things come in threes. That’s what people say, right? Well I am inclined to believe them because my #3 of Ironman Cozumel training just happened, and that my friends is FOOT PAIN.

Here is what my body has been through in the past 1 month of Ironman Cozumel training:

#1. Swimmer’s ear

#2. Bike crash

#3. Foot pain

I woke up Friday morning with dull pain on the lower outside area of my right foot, from the middle to the heel. I have had dull pain here before the day after a long bike ride, but it has always been nothing more than dull and has gone away quickly. This time, it’s the exact opposite. I went through Friday with increased pain until I was limping at lunch, and then hobbling at dinner. I tried to stay off my foot for the rest of the night and iced it and elevated it.

This morning I woke up realizing it was still tender to the touch. Then, the moment of truth. I got out of my bed and put pressure on my right foot….OUCH!! I cannot put my full body weight on my right foot! It hurts even more than it did last night! Ohhh no. What did I do to my poor foot? The best way to describe the pain is that it feels like a sprain.

My first thought is Ironman Cozumel. Is this serious enough to affect it, or can I prevent it going forward? (Do I need new bike shoes? Should I fix my cleat alignment? Do I need days, or worse, weeks of rest??)

My second thought is America’s Finest City (AFC) half marathon tomorrow. I cannot run it now, and that makes me sad because it’s my favorite San Diego race!

Ok enough whining. Has anyone else had foot pain like this? Was it caused from cycling or running? I think running is more common, but I’ve seen discussion forums on both. I’ll be back with updates. Time to meet with Coach Trevor.

My First Bike Crash

August 9, 2012 by Asia

Post hospital visit. Lucky to be smiling. All cleaned up and on drugs.

It happened. I had my first bike crash. I went to the hospital to get checked out, and have no broken bones or stitches to my name. I am sore, have road rash, and am nervous for my next ride, but it could have been so much worse.

Jeremy and I were less than 2 miles from home riding south on highway 101 when it happened. Leucadia is one of the most dangerous areas we ride in because there are cars parked along the highway, there’s a lot of traffic, pedestrians, restaurants and shops, and there are NO bike lanes.

Jeremy was riding right behind me, as usual, to protect me from the cars as they squeezed by us. I always slow down when I see a car easing out into the intersection from the side streets in case they don’t see me. This was a different scenario, however, and I didn’t have time to anticipate what happened next.

A car was approaching from the opposite direction on the 101. It slowed down to turn left, but DIDN’T STOP and started turning in front of me.

In a split second, the car was turning in front of me/at me because it did not see me. I instinctively slammed on both brakes and did a front flip over my handlebars and landed in the road. My bike landed on top of me. Then Jeremy ran into me and over me because he couldn’t stop in time. The only thing that didn’t hit me was the car because the driver saw us at that point. THANK GOD.

As soon as it was over, I was confused to see Jeremy on the ground ahead of me. He was getting up and looked OK but concerned for me. My next thoughts were “Ironman,” and then “Bike.” (Apparently this was all going through my mind as I was moaning and sobbing in the street.) As soon as I realized I could walk, I ran/hobbled out of the intersection and onto the grass because I was afraid of getting hit by a car.

By that time, Jeremy was next to me, and so was the driver of that vehicle and the driver of another vehicle. I’ll spare you with the details, but I was sobbing and making a lot of whimpering noises from the pain and from fear. Did I break anything? Were we OK? Jeremy consoled me and said that the white sticking out of my elbow was not bone and not to worry.

The driver said she didn’t see us. She was very apologetic. She didn’t slam on her brakes until I was already mid-air flip, and by then it was too late for me. I know now that it wasn’t a good time of day for us to be riding because it had just turned to dusk, so that didn’t help matters. Timing is everything.

When we declined calling an ambulance and said he would drive me to the hospital himself, the women packed up our bikes and drove us home. I got the driver’s contact information in case we need anything. I’m so used to hearing about hit and runs. She didn’t even hit me, but she stopped to check on us which I greatly appreciate.

Jeremy drove me to the nearest hospital, and I spent a few hours there getting examined, X-rayed, and cleaned up. No concussion. No broken bones. No stitches. (Close to stitches on the elbow. I am missing a chunk of skin there, so I think I might start shaving my arms to avoid such bad road rash if I ever crash again!) Jeremy didn’t want to get examined so he just sat with me. Luckily his injuries were not as bad as mine.

I’m not angry at the driver or at myself. Perhaps I could have laid on the front brake less and avoided a front flip, but when you are in “fight or flight” mode, you aren’t thinking like that. I honestly thought I was going to get hit, and I am grateful that this accident wasn’t worse. I am not being dramatic when I say that I fear for my life every time I get on my bike because I hear of too many cycling fatalities. I also have friends who have been seriously injured in bike accidents. It’s common to break your collarbone or elbow doing what I did. I am very lucky I didn’t.

In the future, I’m going to avoid riding at dusk and hopefully avoiding riding on that stretch of the 101 until they put a bike lane in. (Rumor has it that it was just approved to put bike lanes in over there!) I will also start riding with gloves again because my palms have gnarly road rash. I don’t want to be terrified of my bike because I still have a lot of Ironman training left to go. Hopefully I can be brave.

Now I just need to relax and embrace recovery mode so I can start Ironman training again. The only part of my body that feels like it might be worse off than cuts and bruises is my left shoulder, so I am going to work on it while I recover. Coach Trevor gave me some mobility exercises to do at home.

I’m happy I didn’t sign up for Ironman Canada which is only 17 days away…Ironman Cozumel is about 15 weeks away which will allow me time to heal and ramp up my training again. I have a half marathon in 11 days so hopefully I can still run that??

Next up are pics of my injury. If you don’t like images of blood, you should stop reading here…

….I’m warning you. They are gross.

Ok here’s a couple that aren’t too bad…

Elbow pre-treatment. gross, right? You can’t see it here, but the cut is deep, and it looks like I have a hole in my elbow now.

Action shot of them scrubbing my road rash

I have more, but that’s all I really need to share.

Have you ever been in a bike accident? How long did you wait before you got up and tried again?

Here We Go! (Again!)

July 19, 2012 by Asia

Ironman Training “take two” is already feeling very different. Last week was a pretty unusual week. I was in Chicago for work and visiting a friend, so Coach Trevor officially started my training plan once I came back to San Diego on Thursday. Here’s how it played out…

20 Weeks until Ironman Cozumel

Sunday: Flew to Chicago to stay with my girlfriend from grad school. Drank too much wine. Failed with the vegan diet and ate too much cheese. Got sick. (Figures!)

Stop #2 for wine. Bottles were 50% off, so I think this is where I got into trouble!

Monday: Forced myself to run in the Chicago heat even though I was slightly hungover and seriously dehydrated. I never found a water fountain while I was out, but I managed to throw down 4 miles at an 8’30” pace along the beautiful river. I heart running. It was a great way to explore the city.

Running along the river downtown

Tuesday: Work stuff and then site-seeing!!

The infamous bean!

One of the many crazy views from below the bean!

That’s a water fountain thingy with a face on it

CHICAGO!

Wednesday: Flew home. Thought about exercising, but decided I would rest and hang out with Jeremy on the couch instead. Watched Forks Over Knives, and then Jeremy decided to follow me on my path to eating more of a plant-based, whole foods diet. Yay!

Thursday: Enter Coach Trevor…
Plan: Bike 90 minutes easy on the coast.
Actual: Biked 60 minutes on the indoor trainer because I couldn’t find a cycling buddy, and I’m afraid of rush hour traffic! Felt kind of bored and fatigued back on the bike. (This was my first time since Ironman Coeur d’Alene.)

Friday:
Plan: Swim on your own. 10 minutes warmup focusing on front quadrant drills. 30 minutes swim nonstop counting laps to validate base.
Actual: I did all that and confirmed that I am, indeed, a slow swimmer! Things can only improve from here, right?

Saturday:
Plan: Bike about 3 hours easy on the coast, focusing on nutrition and hydration. Have fun!
Actual: Started to experience bad knee pain 1:30 hours into the ride, so I cut it short to 2:30 hours. Now I’m worried about my bum knee! Apparently it has been hiding there since I felt knee pain after Ironman Coeur d’Alene. (I was limping for a couple of days, but then it went away.) Trevor is going to help me address this. It’s really good that I have him because I would probably keep training on it too much (like I did on Sunday…)

Sunday:
Plan: Run 90 minutes trails! DO NOT GO HARD! Max 9-10 min/mile. Have fun! (Trevor didn’t know about my knee at this point.)
Actual: Ran 90 minutes – part highway 101 / part trails. Nicole joined me, and it was really fun, so at least I got that right! We also ran really easy at over a 10 min/mile average pace. My knee pain was super dull, so I decided to run on it anyway. Obviously not the best idea, but I was just so happy to be running again with my training buddy!

This week, Coach has me swimming every day except Saturday! My knee pain is fairly non-existent right now and has stayed tame during my short bike and run this week, but it might resurface when I do another long ride or run. I hope, and think, that my knee pain is just inflammation and not a real injury. I put my body through a lot, and it needs to recover. Either way, Ironman Cozumel is still 4 months away, so there is plenty of time to treat whatever this nagging thing is.

Sunday I’m registered for the Solana Beach Sprint Triathlon for fun. This was my first sprint last year, so I’m excited to do it again and see how far I’ve come! I’m excited to get out there and play. Here’s a pic of me from the sprint 1 year ago! I was SO NERVOUS!

Feeling the pre-race anxiety!