14 Days! Ironman Louisville 2015

Hard to believe only 14 days! Taper has officially started now that I have my training done this weekend.

 

My bib number - follow me on raceday - ironman.com

The last few weeks have been tough and exhausting. I have completed my first ever over 100 mile rides, an 18 mile run (which I haven't done since my last marathon in 2002!), 14 miles on a treadmill, swam 2 miles multiple times, and completed a 2.4 mile swim in a 25 yard pool (80 some laps). These trainings not only helped physically, but helped strengthen me up mentally. For an ironman, you need to be strong both physically and mentally. During these trainings, I was able to adapt as needed, practice nutrition, work through stomach cramps, and think alot and alot.



My dad and I after finishing the first 50miles

About a week ago was one of the toughest weeks. My husband's grandmother passed away and his dad was back in the hospital getting stints even though he had quadruple bypass surgery back in April. I had my second century ride scheduled the day before the funeral viewing and my 18 mile run the morning of. The century ride ended up being the hardest ride. It didn't help that I had very little sleep since my youngest kiddo had a tough time sleeping. (We just found out this week that she will be having her tonsils and adenoids out to help with her sleep apnea and a few other issues the tonsils are causing her.)  It was part of the Hope Ride in Hope, Indiana. The weather had called for some rain here and there just for a bit. My dad had agreed to ride the first 50 miles with me which would be his longest ride to date. As soon as we checked in, it had started to rain. After about 5 minutes, it stopped so we took off. According to the weather app, it should have cleared up. However it continued to rain off and on the next few hours, plus some thunder and lightening. We did not have any place for cover so we just focused on biking to the next sag in which case all the thunder and lightening had quit. We also had to cross over 4 metal bridges. The third bridge, we saw two bicyclists that had wrecked on the metal bridge, so helped them a little bit. Fortunately one of the bicyclist was carry a first aid kit that had pretty much everything. On this ride, my right knee started to give me some pain. It would come and go, but I still continued on to the second 50 after dropping dad off at the lunch sag. The second 50 was pretty quiet in the country. The crosswind and headwind were terrible, the roads were bumpy all over. Then at the very end, I was exhausted, knee in pain, took a wrong turn and added another 9 miles. I got out my phone and figured it out. To top it off, when I got back to my dad's truck to go home. I could not get it started! And the thought of running after biking this far seemed impossible.

second 50 on the Hope Ride

Not every workout goes as plan, but during all this ordeal, I learned how I adapt to the conditions to get through. This bad experience, has made me stronger, wiser, and more prepared. I do not need to worry about things I cannot control like the weather - just adapt. If my knee hurts, just ease up and focus on other things and not the pain. The next day, I woke up and my knee was stiff and hurt pretty bad. It was tough to move it forward and back. However, the more I walked around the better it felt,- not great, but better. I decided to go ahead and try to run a slow few miles to see how it would go. After the first 2 miles, I was pain free and ended up running the rest of the 18 miles.

I share the struggles to let you know that everyone has ups and downs. Excuses are easy, ignoring them is the hard part.  Training for the Ironman is tough, but you just focus on the task at hand and break it up into smaller pieces. My training plan started me at 1600 yards swimming back in April. I just swam 4300 yards (2.4miles). I have never biked more than 25-30miles, I have biked over 100 - twice!  I have been a runner most of my life, but I haven't run these distances since having 3 kids and never ran more than 5-6 miles on a treadmill - let alone the 14 miles I did a few weeks back because that was the lesser of the two evils (hot, hot weather was the other evil). I did not know much about nutrition, calories, electrolytes, but have learned how many calories I need, how often I need to drink, what foods works for me. It has been a learning experience. I have swam over 57 miles, biked 1992 miles, and ran 333 miles for over 2300 miles covered throughout the 22 weeks. Fortunately, I was able to surround myself with great family and friends that has supported me during this journey. I have found a great mentor who continues to give great tips and advice. A good group from Ironwilled - Women who Tri who are racing Louisville too. So if you have a crazy goal - go for it! There will be ups and downs, but just focus on your goal and work hard towards achieving it.

my last run before taper on my favorite country road to run on

I still have yet to swim in the Ohio with my wetsuit which I hope to do if the algae leaves, plan out race week where we have 2 days to check in, a day to drop off the bike, plan all the nutrition and finalize the clothes for the race. It is going to be an exciting two weeks!