50 mile ride on the Silver Comet Trail
When I registered for the race, I knew I would train hard and had faith I could do it, but what I didn't anticipate is how much FUN I'd be having throughout this training. Sure, there are some bad days thrown in there where I have to really push myself to get out the door, but for the most part it has been an enjoyable experience! I credit that to a number of things, such as hiring an AMAZING nutrition coach who also put me in touch with an AMAZING sports chiropractor, and having my AMAZING friend and training buddy by my side throughout this training journey.
My Awesome Training Buddy :)
Without further ado, here are some training highlights from the past 3 months:
1) MAJOR improvement in my running!
1) MAJOR improvement in my running!
For the longest time I had been suffering from pain in my gluts and IT band and was told I had gluteal tendonitis (yep, butt tendonitis is a real thing people!) My sports doc referred me to a sports orthotist, who then told me I did NOT need stability shoes for overpronators and to go out and buy a pair of neutral running shoes. He also hand-made me some orthotics to wear in my shoes and claimed this would change my life as I knew it. Somewhat skeptical, I did what he said and got my first pair of Brooks running shoes. I'm in love!
Next, I had my nutrition coach examine my running form, and she advised me on how to correct it. It took some time to adjust and get the muscle memory going, but I finally feel like I am making headway with my running and had my best long distance run to date this past Sunday!
I ran 11.22 miles thru HILLY neighborhoods in 2 hours! Yippeee!
Oh...and I also finally got a Garmin :)
2) More time in the saddle--longer and longer distances!
In July I participated in a 60 mile bike ride--the Georgia 400 Hospitality hwy century. This was a GREAT experience, in spite of some CRAZY tough hills that made me get off my bike a few times. It was also an immersion into group riding since we were riding on busy roads and crossing busy intersections. I learned all the hand signals cyclists use and gained some more courage to ride on shared roads with vehicles.
In July I participated in a 60 mile bike ride--the Georgia 400 Hospitality hwy century. This was a GREAT experience, in spite of some CRAZY tough hills that made me get off my bike a few times. It was also an immersion into group riding since we were riding on busy roads and crossing busy intersections. I learned all the hand signals cyclists use and gained some more courage to ride on shared roads with vehicles.
I'm in there somewhere wearing red :)
And because 60 miles just isn't enough, last weekend we tackled and completed 70 miles, and we were still smiling at the end! In an exciting turn of events, when we were only about 13 miles into the ride a yellow jacket decided to hit me in the neck--stinger first! How Rude! He probably just didn't like the colors I was wearing (A little college football reference for those who aren't familiar with Georgia teams).
It hurt so badly, I immediately yelled for Kimberly to stop and kindly requested she pull out the stinger which was lodged IN my neck still. Luckily there was a sheriff's office inside a red caboose a few miles down the path, so we dropped by for some coffee insect sting medication. Then we were on our merry way--well, I was TRYING to be merry even though the sting was still hurting (and actually ended up hurting for about 24 hours :P).
The Sheriff's Caboose
3) Training races
At the end of July I did the PT Solutions Acworth women's sprint tri as a 'training race' and it was a really great race! My favorite part was the bike, and I felt really strong passing many women and pushing myself. The run was pretty much all uphill and the heat of the day didn't help much either, but still my time wasn't bad, and I was happy :)
At the end of July I did the PT Solutions Acworth women's sprint tri as a 'training race' and it was a really great race! My favorite part was the bike, and I felt really strong passing many women and pushing myself. The run was pretty much all uphill and the heat of the day didn't help much either, but still my time wasn't bad, and I was happy :)
Training buddy and I at the sprint tri in our new Ironheart Tri kits
One of the first race running photos I actually like without cropping :)
In August we also had an Olympic distance race in our training plan and decided to do Tri the Parks Richard B. Russell race again this year. My time last year was pretty slow since I was recovering from a stress fracture, so my goal was to majorly beat my time and to have FUN doing it!
4) Training rides with old and new friends!
A few weeks ago we joined a group of fellow triathletes who are also racing at Augusta, and we rode the 56 mile bike course together. It definitely helped to calm my nerves since it is not as hilly as I was anticipating and overall I felt pretty good during the ride. Now I know what to expect and am feeling more comfortable with the idea of covering 70.3 miles of swimming, biking and running in one day!
A few weeks ago we joined a group of fellow triathletes who are also racing at Augusta, and we rode the 56 mile bike course together. It definitely helped to calm my nerves since it is not as hilly as I was anticipating and overall I felt pretty good during the ride. Now I know what to expect and am feeling more comfortable with the idea of covering 70.3 miles of swimming, biking and running in one day!
The Augusta Group
Augusta, here we come! Two weeks! :)
