ANOTHER PIECE TO THE PUZZLE

I know I hinted at more to come on some of my discoveries on my road to better fitness. I want to be sure what I am saying (and doing) is correct and works before I endorse it. What I will say right now is so far so good.

Here's another piece to the puzzle: short interval periods of high intensity followed by equal or longer periods of rest = more fat burning and better fitness.

TEACHING AN OLD DOG NEW TRICKS

After all these years, is it possible I (and others) have this all wrong? In my annual quest for self improvement, I started seeking a new way to do what is familiar, which has led me on an enlightening journey, filled with frustration, disbelief, awareness, and finally acknowledgement that maybe what I’ve been doing for so many years just isn’t working.

Remember when I posted back in January about reading a book by a woman who had done an Ironman who also had her own fitness club, wrote books, was a female body builder, etc.? Her belief was that maybe all that steady state cardio really won’t help you keep that lean physique everyone seems to want but which is elusive to many of us. Because I found I fit that category, it got me, and kept me, wondering and seeking more information. I will add that while her articles got me thinking, I found after the fact that her program was not what I needed. Still, she did earn good marks for sending me down this road of self-enlightenment.

During training and after doing the IM, I pretty much expected that I would have no lingering weight problem, my body fat percentage would drop dramatically, I would be stronger, leaner, faster, healthier. Imagine my complete surprise and disappointment when I realized this had not happened. Yes, I had completed one of the premier endurance events around, and yes, that alone gave me a huge amount of self-satisfaction, also fulfilling a goal I had carried around with me for many years.

But still, something nagged at me. Something made me question whether I had accomplished the one goal I sought after more than anything: reaching the ultimate in good health and fitness.

To be honest, I was concerned that I did not have that many years left to achieve these things, and was even more concerned to find I was not in the best physical condition that I could be, or thought I would be, after that event. Without going into a lot of mundane details, being the person I am, I set out to make a better me.

I researched dozens of fitness articles, as well as the authors for credibility. I examined dozens of workout programs, and again their authors for credibility. I studied many philosophies about fitness and what makes a person fit, but what I mainly found was once you got in depth into a website, often the bottom line was someone wanted to sell you something—and not necessarily anything you needed, but made you think you might. First there was the buildup, then the enticements, and finally the closing of the sale. I do not usually part with my money readily without being absolutely sure I believe in what I’m buying or need it more than another similar product. Basically, most of these programs I decided I wasn’t buying. There were a lot of good parts here and there, that combined might have been an ideal product or program, but nothing in its whole could convince me it was worth my time long term. And I know from experience that if I am not going to stick with something long term, there is no sense in starting it--like yoga, for instance. I do not want to spend the time to get good at it, so it is more of a nuisance to me and my time if I do it.

Then, quite by accident—and usually, don’t revelations happen this way?—I came across a link that totally changed my thinking of everything fitness related I have been doing for over 20 years. In the process, it blew apart for me the whole cardio thing.

And now, I will entice you, to come back soon and check for details. I am still in the process of trying out and further researching a program, but unfortunately with work and other commitments, I am unable to go in depth right now. That and I'm getting ready for my yearly tropical vacation and have yet begun to pack or plan for that! I promise, however, if I do have internet service while away, I will post not only my vacation details but try to get a continuation of this report posted so as not to leave you hanging. The one good thing for me about being gone is I can put this experiment to more of a test.

So stay tuned!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

OUT OF THE DARKNESS AND INTO THE LIGHT

That's how my run went this morning: started out with the full moon, ended with the sunrise. It was so uplifting for many reasons.

First, it is the sure sign that winter is waning and spring is truly just around the corner. When I can go out for a weekday run before work and have it daylight when I return is a turning point. That and most of the streets and sidewalks are now clear of snow buildup and most of the ice.

Next, it has been weeks, no months, since I have had a good run, probably since B2B, if you could call that a good run. Taking some mandatory time off from running after the IM, then having winter set in, a bad December virus that took weeks to clear up, holiday shopping, the holidays themselves, more winter setting in, then the headaches, it seems like while I have been working out steadily, no measurable progress was being made. I was just going through the motions that are a part of my everyday life. I couldn't even begin to plan a race season with the almost daily headaches. Update on that seems to be--at this point anyway--an allergic reaction to something environmental, based on the other symptoms. Those too seem to be clearing up, although not totally gone.

Third, Masters swim is no longer kicking my butt, at least to the point where I feel drugged and unable to function the next morning. Part of that was pushing myself through hard workouts with the headaches, which themselves left me exhausted. To be able to get up and run in the morning is a sure sign of overcoming that hurdle.

So when I get a day or two (its been 3 days in a row now for the first time since mid January) without a headache, I feel like I have all this energy built up inside of me that is waiting to let loose. Today was one of those days, and I am so glad I made the effort to get dressed to go out, even though Monday nights are late nights with masters swim and eating late, going to bed late, etc. I rarely get more than 4 or 5 hours sleep Monday nights, but still woke up without an alarm and was ready to head out the door by 6:30.

The full moon was still out. Everyone on Facebook talked about it last night, so I was eager to get out and enjoy it, if only briefly. It was 23 degrees, 10 full degrees colder than yesterday, but with no wind and proper clothing, I still found myself sweating somewhat throughout the whole run. Forty minutes later, the sun was up and the day was upon me.

Let's hope these good feelings last!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5k5IY3l2aJo

YOU WIN SOME, YOU LOSE SOME

That's how it went this weekend. I chose NOT to run the Heart & Sole race, annually held around Valentine's Day. The last time I ran it was in 2007, on a bitterly cold (3 degrees) day, just a few months after my accident. I wore Yak Trax even because snow cover on the ground was deep packed snow from an overnight snowfall. February is such a crapshoot for weather here, so you never know what you will get: either as described above or sunny and balmy, as it was this past Saturday when the race was held.

I hadn't signed up ahead of time because I honestly forgot about it, mainly since I'm not training for 5ks and also because the last couple of weekends I have dealt with the debilitating headaches and haven't put much time in and totally skipped my long runs, a staple of my running all year round, whether done inside or out, and regardless of how slow.

Then I found out the location of the race this year had moved, to within running distance of my house. Still, with the sun bright and the sky blue and almost cloudless, it was a hard decision: run long or run fast? Run fast was not an option, not having put much fast running in since before IM. And any fast running had not been on the road, so the decision came easy.

It was probably in the mid to high 30s by the time I got out to run, and halfway through the run (only 6 miles, since I had skipped a couple of weeks, so I could reacclimate my legs and lungs) I realized I was pretty much overdressed. So it was thoroughly--or almost-- enjoyable.

Then I decide to check race results out of curiosity, mainly just to see who was there and how they did. I was stunned when I found out there were only two people in my age group and the "winning" time was almost 40 minutes, and the 2nd place was over 45 minutes! Wow, and to think. I could have won the age group with a brisk walk! Or, as someone put it "just for showing up."

So, lesson learned. No more missing out on opportunities for winning bling! I have done many races where just showing up earned me an age group award, but as someone else put it, "showing up is 90% of life."

NOT A TEAPOT

Or a sex toy (?!) as some guessed. Yesterday's "Wordless Wednesday" picture was of a neti pot, as several guessed.

What is a neti pot, for those who don't know? Up until about 4 months ago, I never heard of it or had ever seen one. A friend of mine told me about this after seeing it on the Dr. Oz show, which I also had never watched but had heard of.

A neti pot is a gadget that helps clear your sinuses better than most nasal sprays or drugs, as I am finding out after a months' long problem with plugged ears, sinus headaches, and constant nose dripping. I'm not going to go into the specifics of how this thing works, but it basically clears the sinuses with a saline solution you make yourself with saline packets and warm water.

The first time I used it, I pretty much gagged myself and barely got through the first treatment, but further treatments have gone well. What I am noticing, however, is that sometimes even hours after, if I bend over or put my head down for any reason, I still get a steady stream of saline that drips like a faucet out of my nose.

I found out years ago when I first started swimming that apparently I was really sensitive to the chlorine because after a while, whether I swam that day or not, my nose dripped chlorine or I sneezed all day long. For some odd reason, my sinuses seem to retain whatever fluid is introduced into them, which is why the chlorine sensitivity and why I would guess the saline leaks out hours after treatments.

But the neti pot does work. If you do have constant sinus problems, it is an easier and drug free solution to helping clear up that problem, and probably less costly. The kit cost about $10 and after 4 months I still have some saline packets left, which you can but individually as well.

What I can't figure out is why no doctor ever told me about this?

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

SERIOUSLY?

I have been doing indoor triathlons since 1994. They are a fun way to get in some serious, high intensity training and racing in the winter months while living in the ice, snow, and cold. Just a short sprint workout: 15 or 20 minutes of each leg, swim, bike, and run, and 5 minute transitions between, amounting to not more than an hour workout. A few years back, when my friend Jan started doing tris, I got her hooked on doing them as well. Not only are they a good, quick but serious workout for the off season, but it is great to be able to keep up on what other triathletes you might not otherwise see in the winter and find out what they are doing or thinking of doing for the upcoming season.

So on a swim day, when I do my best thinking, when autumn was winding down and winter was approaching, I came up with the brilliant idea to try to put together an indoor triathlon at my gym. I know there are some good and serious athletes who belong, but being a small, private gym, you don't always see people on a regular basis, and I thought that would also be a good way to get people mingling a little at the same time getting in a good bit of competition.

After weeks of discussion with the athletic director and a few other members, who I might add were all enthusiastic about the idea, the signup board when up with a projected date of February 20. The signup sheet went up about mid-January. Jan and I were the first to sign up. And then? No one. Not one other single person signed up.

Plans were scrapped for the event, and I was disappointed and somewhat surprized and baffled as to what the problem was. At our recent 2009 awards dinner, several people expressed an interest in being at least part of a relay team, a few indicated they might be interested if they weren't already going to be out of town, and others learned that you aren't expected to run 10 miles or some other ridiculous distance on a treadmill. None, however, signed up.

Chatter around the gym as to what was really going on here completely took me by surprise. An alternative competition plan came up, where you would join a team and then do the triathlon on your own time, at your own speed, and post team totals weekly, with weekly competitions taking place through March. (This is somewhat confusing, but I did finally figure it out.) So the idea then was to get into teams, do your thing, post your distance/time and see how your totals compared with others. People seemed to be somewhat enthusiastic about and on board with this, but then? "Just as long as Jan and Vickie aren't on the same team." What?

Apparently, since we are both accomplished triathletes and runners, we are to be feared? Seriously?

What was truly laughable to me about this was the fact that just because I have done an IM, suddenly I am a force to be reckoned with? Me, who is undisputedly the slowest triathlete on the planet, and someone is worried I might beat them? The only thing that might set me apart from any of them is my determination, dedication, and discipline to the sport. Speed is not a factor here, and its highly unlikely I will get faster any time in the future.

So while I am flattered at the perceived image others have of me (and I might add something that keeps me on my toes), I am just a normal person who likes to work out and do triathlons in my spare time. Nothing to worry about people!

HEADACHE

It started innocently enough well over a week ago, probably closer to 2 weeks ago now. A headache every day that responded almost instantly to ibuprofen and only needed to be taken once a day. But still, I was a little puzzled and concerned, because headaches aren't on my list of common ailments. I attributed the daily pain to a couple of things. First, the detoxing I'd been going through, although I do not drink caffeine, wasn't dehydrated, or low on salt, which are common problems when purging your system of unneeded chemicals or additives in foods.

Next, I wondered if it had something to do with the new swimming classes. While I had been swimming for years and swam a lot last year training for the IM, none of it was with the high intensity I'd been putting into these classes.

So I tolerated these headaches, figuring they would eventually subside. Instead, they only got worse, to the point where my whole head ached all day and all night and my vision was actually getting blurred from the pain. I was grouchy and irritable besides.

Only when the spasms started in my head did it finally register with me that I had had this problem before, over 10 years ago, and it led to the same outcome: spasms, which the doctor attributed to tight neck muscles and inflammation of the occipital muscles in the back of the head.

The only way to describe the feeling of these spasms is to imagine someone yanking on your hair over and over, all day long, until your scalp is tender to the touch and it is so all encompassing that you can't think straight.

So I have been completely delinquent in any workouts or attending to much in the way of family time. Cleaning and wash? Not happening.

I finally was put on muscle relaxers, which for the most part leave me feeling groggy and lethargic. Working out was not an option most of the days once the spasms started, however, I couldn't help but notice the headaches subsided while working out. Once the spasms started, however, I pretty much became a vegetable.

I think another factor, for me, is the need for regular massage, which I have neglected this as well since IM mainly because the person I regularly went to disappeared and the couple of people I went to after did not suit my needs at all.

Apparently regular massages must become a part of my routine, whether I think I need them or not. Today, 4 days into the muscle relaxer therapy, I am finally able to return to work, and am having only slight to no discomfort, and no spasms as of yet. I have an indoor tri to do this weekend, which that happening right now is somewhat debatable. If the no spasms continue through Saturday, I will do it. Otherwise, I'm dropping out. I would rather get rid of this problem rather than aggravate it.

Stay tuned.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

SO YOU THINK YOU CAN SWIM?

That's what I thought anyway. Technically, yes I can swim. And I can swim long distances. And I can swim every day if I wanted to. And I have been swimming for 18 years. But apparently, according to the master's swim instructor, I don't do it very well.

Over the years, I have swam with probably 5 different master's swim groups. For those who don't know what this is, master's doesn't refer to an age group thing like it does in running. I don't know what the actual description of it is, but to me it means people who get together with or without a coach to practice swimming: drills, flip turns, different swim strokes, etc. Some of it is intended to be used for competing in "master's" swim meets: meaning, out of school adults trying to stay competive.

Its been probably 5 years since swimming with any organized group, but I figured it would only be a tuneup when joining this year, with the goal of becoming faster than ever before. After all, I just did an Ironman swim, after spending an entire year working on that swim, along with several triathlons over that year and in the past 13 years. I could always lap people in my regular pool, but without any concentrated speed work in the pool, I wasn't all that fast in the tris, and I was finding myself only getting slower.

So I joined this group this year with the intention of getting super fast. Three weeks into this, I'm not sure if I'm getting any faster, but I do know everyone else around me is. I can be thankful at least that all my last place finishes in races have prepared me well for the humiliation of being last every single time in our drills.

For me, the hardest part after killing myself on the drills to not be so slow everyone waits for me every time is swimming with all these crazy people! Its just like a triathlon, so I guess that's some good experience. While I do not have trouble getting through the water in a triathlon, I do hate the body contact involved and have developed some pretty bad swim habits to avoid getting whacked or running into others.

Last night was particularly difficult because, even being in the "slow" lane, one new person got mixed in with us and another sort of fast guy. I made body contact with someone on every single length (not lap--apparently "real" swimmers do not swim laps, just lengths), and I don't think it was always my fault. In circle swimming (where you go down one side of the lane and circle back on the other), there were two groups doing two separate things. That amounted to 8 people in one lane. The "faster" of the slow people had one side of the lane, and that left me and new girl to take the other side of the lane. I'm not sure how wide these lanes are, but they are definitely not as wide as 8 people standing shoulder to shoulder. So it was going to be tight.

New girl apparently either did not understand the concept of circle swimming or she didn't realize she wasn't doing it. We collided on every single length, and if I didn't get it from her, I got it from the fast guy in the slow-fast group. I know some of it wasn't intentional, but I have to wonder if some was. I lost track of the number of times I scraped my knuckles or whole body against the wall trying to stay out of everyone's way. So it was no surprise when each of my "descending 300s" actually turned out to be ascending, meaning slower. The first two were almost exactly the same; the last was a full 25 seconds slower, but I guess I just got tired from trying to stay out of the way of everyone on each length I did. That in itself probably took up some extra energy I could have used to hopefully speed up.

But progress does seem to be happening. Last night I actually hit the 1 mile (1600 meters)cumulative distance in the 1 hour practice (not straight through swimming and with kick board and rests between drill sets). And to think, when training, I used to do 1.5 miles in an hour.

I am trying to stay positive and not talk myself out of quitting. While it is not "hard," it is definitely a learning experience. Every week I learn something new that I'm doing wrong.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

TRIMMING THE FAT

Its that time of year again, time to get rid of that "bulge" that has developed over the past year, either from overindulging or just doing steady state endurance training, which as I mentioned a while back, does nothing to really trim the fat from the body, just helps maintain a healthy or almost healthy weight.

Since discontinuing the long endurance training needed for IM, then the holidays, and winter in general, which I believe in cold weather climates leads to the body wanting to cling to any extra fat you might carry in order to stay warm, I can't help but start feeling out of shape by this time every year, regardless of how much I am exercising or watching what I eat.

And since I no longer run 35-40 miles a week or have four small children to run around after, I have found over the past 5 years or so especially that the only true way for me to get back into racing shape is to do the drastic "detox" method of dieting for anywhere from 2-4 weeks. This has always proven successful in helping me lose up to 15 pounds of weight that apparently I don't really need. My goal this year isn't quite that drastic, but it certainly is the best way--for me--to drop 5-7 pounds within a few weeks. And what better time than the off season?

What this involves is no sugar, no caffeine, no alcohol, no starchy foods, no "white" flour foods. While I don't find it that hard to give up sweets or snacks, I do find it hard to give up toast, french fries, peanut butter (massive amounts), or other salty foods, all comfort foods for me. Those are my downfall. And if I do drink wine, it only increases my chance of eating more of these foods than I need. I am just one of those people who has to completely stop eating something to quit binging on stuff I don't need. Binging isn't necessarily the right word, but I can't think of anything else close to describe this. Maybe getting out of control at times is a better way of putting it.

Anyway, I am on day 9 of this process. Its an up and down thing. What do you eat when you go out to eat? How do you tactfully avoid certain foods when asked to dinner at a friend's? How do you avoid the cocktails and nuts at the pre-dinner meeting cocktail hour? How do you balance things out so you're just not living on veggies and water all day? How do you keep from thinking about food all day? What happens if you forget to read a label, assuming you know what is in a particular food and find out later there is hidden sugar? And the most challenging, how do you handle workouts and eating, while still managing to eat "clean" and maintain muscle and not become a limp rag?

It is hard to be constantly vigilant, and I tell myself every year I will be good all year to avoid this process next year. But my memory is short apparently, and once again I fell into that trap last year.

So far, in 9 days, I have managed to go down about 2.5 pounds, which I think is a fairly normal loss, not necessarily related to water loss because I don't tend to retain water ever. I have been going more frequently just because of increased water intake and that tendency to flush out the system, especially cutting out the excess things the body really doesn't need to survive. But its very hard to tell yourself no when all these temptations are around.

After 9 days, however, your body starts listening to your brain, and it starts becoming second nature to avoid certain things you know are only going to put you back on that roller coaster again. The true test is not the "detox" or "deprivation" stage is continuing this good eating plan throughout the year.

This year....

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

HOW THE PAST OFTEN COMES BACK TO YOU IN STRANGE WAYS

I have been mulling over and over in my mind, doing research, looking at the calendar, etc. trying to get 2010 races mapped out so I can start planning vacation. All the things I've looked at had some conflict, even if minor, which kept me looking over and over again. There are so many things I want to do, its hard to decide. And added to that is the feeling I have and others have led me to believe I should think this way, that now that I've done an IM, I can pretty much do anything. That, of course, is the positive, confident way to look at it, but I am too much of a realist to fall into that trap completely. And maybe a skeptic or a chicken too. I just know I want to do different training this year than last, so doing another IM this year probably won't happen. What to do, what to do??

Friday while on Facebook, I had a post from Friends of North Country Trail Run. I didn't remember joining that group, but who knows when that happened. Anyway, they were posing a trivia question about one of the new promoters of the race, which was actually bought from a couple of friends of mine who have put on this race (50 miler, marathon) for several years, after having moved onto other endeavors (IM triathlon, bike races, etc.). I have always wanted to do this race but either was injured or training for other things at the time it was held every year (late September). The first clue of the trivia question they posed was something like who was a big time marathoner and who also did 5 Ironman triathlons? (Sorry, can't get to the post to copy the actual text.) Hmm. Could be anyone, I thought. Second clue: and who also won the 199___ Smoky Mt. Marathon, etc.?

Right away, without knowing for sure, I responded "Bart Yasso." Sure enough, I was right. Why did I guess Bart Yasso? Because I was actually at the 1998 Smoky Mt. Marathon and sat next to him at the prerace dinner (I think he was also the guest speaker). I had gone with a group of friends who had been doing this race as a group road trip for years, even though I was only doing the 8k because of an injury. One of the guys in our group actually went with the intention of winning the race, and he did come in second place--behind Bart Yasso. Bart Yasso has also written for Runners World for many, many years, and is the creator of the Yasso 800s so many have talked about or used in marathon training. Yasso 800s are supposed to be a predictor of your marathon finish: how fast you run an 800 in minutes translates over to hours in finishing. For example, if you run an 800 in 4 minutes, all indicators are that you can finish a marathon in 4 hours.

I used this training method for my first marathon, and we were running in the 4-4:30 range for the 800s, and had I not hit the wall at 7 miles, had temperatures in the teens, with a 40 mile headwind, I might have finished faster than the 4:36 I finished, but I was pretty close to the predictor time, so I feel it worked and gave me a good idea of what I could do.

Anyway, I'm getting off subject here. So I won the trivia contest, and my "prize" then was $20 off registration for any of the races being held (50 miler, marathon, and now a new half marathon).

So it looks like now a new focus for the year will be to do that trail marathon. The only disappointment here is that it is held in late August instead of late September, so that means changing other things around as well. I have found two other trail half marathons close by I can do this year to prepare, and we have a fairly new trail running area off the bike path I will start using once the weather permits. I actually swore off trail runs a few years ago after one particularly grueling off road triathlon. I have to say that run was one of the worst I have ever done (almost 2 hours to do 4.8 miles), but of course my big fear was spraining an ankle again.

I still plan to do some tris, and hope to still fit in a half Ironman this year, but it may be fun to look at some new things for 2010.

EXPLANATION?

"WASHINGTON – A mystery object from space is about to whizz close by Earth on Wednesday. It won't hit our planet, but scientists are stumped by what exactly it is.


Astronomers say it may be space junk or it could be a tiny asteroid, too small to cause damage even if it hit. It's 33 to 50 feet wide at most.NASA says that on Wednesday at 7:47 a.m. EST, it will streak by, missing Earth by about 80,000 miles. In the western United States it may be bright enough to be seen with a good amateur telescope."



What was more mysterious to me than the imagined picture of the object itself was the lack of significance of this happening yesterday at 7:47 EST since first, it would be too dark in most places in the Eastern Standard Time Zone. at that time of the day to see, second, it wasn't supposed to cause any damage even if it did hit somewhere on earth so why would this be news, and third, I would have thought the earthquake in Haiti might have far more importance over this insignificant little report, with misspellings and bad grammar besides.



I just thought it was a weird picture that might leave everyone mystified by what it might be.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY