This Fox Trots

A moustache for me...in permanent marker!

2011-11-08T10:52:00.000-08:00

Full steam ahead! I'm only just barely keeping some injuries at bay - quads and calves are totally acting up, I think due to my poor/inefficient pedal stroke as I hammer away on my road bike. Foam roller torture sessions and a few fascia "massage" sessions that had my toes curling and me just barely containing screams of pain are the only thing keeping these muscles just barely on the right side of injury. Once weekly yoga is better than nothing but it's probably not quite enough to help combat the abuse I'm putting my body through.

Sunday evening yoga, is there a better way to wrap up the weekend? I think not. What a restorative thing to do at the end of a weekend, I'm really, really enjoying it. Funny, I always really enjoy yoga whenever I do it, it's just so bloody expensive I've been priced out of it. As long as I'm running and biking though I think it's something I should continue with in order to balance things out and ensure I remain injury free. Stretching at home helps, of course, but an hour of dedicated stretching is ideal and the only way that's happening is at a scheduled session. It's also very relaxing. I feel like I float out of the yoga studio on a quiet, happy cloud on Sunday evenings. Precisely the opposite of sweating and grunting up a hill perched atop an aluminium contraption. Balance.

Last weekend I did a 12k race as part of an 8 member crew of women for the Whistler 50. I think my time was 1:09 and change. It hurt a lot and at the time I felt like I was running 22k not 12k. I was not prepared. Doesn't matter, it was just for fun, I had no goal other than to drink beer after the race and I did that. This year is the first time the race was held in Whistler, it was formerly called Haney to Harrison and was based out of Harrison. I think I'll probably give this race a pass next year in favour of STORMY - in my opinion a much more fun event, largely due to the Summer weather we get to enjoy in August when STORMY is held. I enjoy trail running more than road running, so STORMY is ideal for me.

I'm keeping myself busy with some strength and endurance classes, spin classes, CompuTrainer sessions, running, swimming and yoga. My schedule is jam packed, I'm sore most of the time, and I'm enjoying all of it. I just registered for a 1/2 marathon in February to ensure I keep up with running, my weakest sport in terms of triathlon.

It's that time of year again, time to give some thought to 2012 goals and consider what I'd like to work towards and achieve in terms of sport. I've got some ideas hatching, nothing set in stone quite yet. The First Half in February will be a good kick off and my first race of the year.

I plan to get out and enjoy some xc skiing and snow shoeing this Winter too. You've got to make time to play in the snow, otherwise you just end up despising it...so I have to work at having fun outside in the snow or I'll face a Winter of misery. There's snow all over the place now so I guess there's no time like the present to get out there!

As part of Movember I have agreed to draw a permanent marker moustache on my face and keep it on all day for November 30th. I'm a tool, I know. But it's for good and not evil so why not? I've been testing out permanent marker removal methods and so far nail polish remover works best. Why do I get myself into these things?!

I was sprawled on the couch

2011-10-05T14:19:00.000-07:00

I did another fun ride on Sunday, around 80k along the Sea to Sky highway between Vancouver and Squamish with a group of 5 others. A lovely day for a ride, we even saw a little blue sky which was a nice break from the clouds and rain we've been having. The beginning of the ride was stop start stop start, we had 3 flats to deal with in the first 45 minutes. Things went smoothly after that and we enjoyed lunch and coffee at Delaney's in Park Royal Village, a perfect pit stop. Even though this ride was about 30km shorter than last weekend's ride I found it more of a challenge. My legs were still sore from Friday's session, eeek!

Monday I spent the entire day sprawled on the couch with a monster of a headache, I didn't go to work, didn't go to CompuTrainer and missed a meeting, it was that bad. My guess is I effed up my liquid/electrolyte/h20 intake the day before and I paid for it Monday. Nasty business and I've got to get that sorted out, don't want to be suffering like that after every long ride. On a positive note, I had the nutrition side of things dialed! Real food all day (bananas, eggs, ham, cheese, whole wheat bread, peanut butter, coconut, plus 1 package of Honey Stinger (Orange Blossom) blocks doled out at regular intervals on the return trip home kept me fueled and feeling feisty.

After work yesterday I went for a lovely trail run with 2 lovely gals. We hit up the Sea to Sky trail starting near Cheakamus (across from Function) and made our way towards the Calcheak bridge. We estimate it was about 10k, and there were some hills thrown in to keep us honest. The terrain was awesome, lovely gravel that's been packed down and doesn't feel loose and sketchy. An A+ for that trail, a perfect running trail. We had a few peek a boo spots where we could see snow capped mountains, the rest was trees and and rivers and creeks. Whistler at its best!

Looking ahead and excited for Winter!

2011-09-30T17:55:00.000-07:00

I had my ass handed to me this morning by way of a personal training session with a coach. One on one there's no ducking out, skipping a lap, or hiding in the forest while you catch your breath. I wasn't doing anything overly strenuous, I'm just really weak! Like a newborn baby weak. My arms felt like jello and my quads were on fire, as they have been for about 3 weeks now. I've no core strength at all and my lunges and squats are pathetic. I think the coach was trying not to laugh at me.

This Summer more than any other I've become very aware of how physically active a community Squamish is. I suppose I'm moving more in those circles and nothing's changed other than me and who I hang out with. I love this about Squamish and I appreciate it every. single. day. There are people in Squamish who inspire me with what they've achieved. The athletic accomplishments in our little town are astounding. I won't list them, I couldn't possibly do it justice. Suffice to say it's a town full of athletes of all levels with varied interests. A sporty partner to go out and play outside with is just a phone call away, it's pretty great. I love my town so much!

After this morning's one on one coached "skill class" I'm now set to start Strength/Endurance classes and Spin classes for the next 3 months. These on top of the usual swimming, running and Compu Trainer should keep me out of trouble until Christmas. And these classes will be a fun and social way to maintain a regular exercise routine in the dreary Winter months, something that's essential to my well being. Guess I'll squeeze in xc skiing and showshoeing on the weekends? I'm already looking forward to the snow flying as I know many others here are too. There's already all kinds of talk of Callaghan and skate skiing/classic skiing and some co workers and I have plans for some evening snowshoe adventures with headlamps on our favourite running trail near the office.

So much to look forward to, let the snow fly.

Lessons learned

2011-09-27T11:30:00.000-07:00

So much has happened since my last post in May. Worst Summer of my life last year, best Summer of my life this year. I can hardly believe how much fun I had this Summer, it was fantastic. Below is a bit of an account of my training from May onward.

Shortly after the last post I had a successful sprint triathlon (even with a frightfully cold swim where I couldn't breathe). I continued training for an Olympic distance triathlon with my coach, although he moved far away (Europe) and communication dropped off, which caused some problems that were pretty much all my fault. Eventually I freaked out, had a complete crisis of confidence in terms of triathlon, and totally stepped back and changed my plans abandoning the solo Olympic triathlon pursuit. I ended up doing the local Olympic triathlon as a relay team rather than solo and it was fun and I did well in the swim. My time was 24:46 for the 1,500 metre swim.

I did the Whistler 1/2 marathon in early June. A PB for me, though I didn't feel prepared for the half. Next goal for a 1/2 will be to break 2 hours.

In mid July I quit a sprint triathlon right after the swim. It wasn't a big deal, there are always other triathlons/races, but you know you're not in a good place when you quit mid-race, especially since I wasn't ill or injured, I just straight up hated it and didn't want to be there. Thankfully most everyone I spoke to about it was supportive and agreed that it happens from time to time and that it was no big deal. The funny thing is the day before the sprint tri I did a fantastic open water swim race, and I loved that! The Across the Lake Swim in Kelowna is an amazing event, a must do! Seriously, put it on your race schedule for 2012. Some people asked me if I thought the open water swim race the day before had a negative impact on the sprint triathlon. The answer is no, I don't think so. I felt good and confident and excited about the open water swim, I felt shitty and under prepared and anxious about the sprint triathlon. It was a mental issue rather than a physical one.

I also quit a local running race partway through in late July. It was only a 10k race and after struggling through the first 4km I just took my number off, stepped off the course and went home. I'm not sure what exactly went wrong, I just wasn't feeling it at all.

In early August my cousin and I did an open water swim race in the ocean just off Kit's beach. It was a small field, so I was able to win 1st place woman in the 1,500 metre event. Yay! My time was 22:46. Obviously one doesn't shave off 2 minutes in a month, so I'm confident the currents/tides were in my favour that day.

Lessons learned: pay close attention to how I feel and don't race if I don't feel like racing. I'm a recreational athlete and in it for fun. I race simply to keep my training focused and to work towards a goal. If I don't feel like racing, I'm not going to race. Simple. The other lesson I learned is that a coach can only do his or her job properly if I communicate properly. Yeah, I know...duh!! For whatever reason it just didn't occur to me to tell my coach that I was struggling to finish everything on the schedule every single day etc., so he in turn never modified my training schedule. My fault, I now know better.

I also quit riding my road bike all together in late Spring. My bike didn't fit me properly and that eventually made riding unbearable, so I quit. Luckily I borrowed a friend's bike in August, it's smaller and fits me very well, and what a difference! I've been happily riding ever since and I find myself with a huge ass grin on my face during many rides. Also a lot of grimacing, because sometimes it hurts like hell. I began riding home after work from Whistler to Squamish on a regular basis, it's about 46-50km, and that's been fun and a great way to squeeze in a workout. Then I added a few more longer rides in and finally last weekend I did my longest road ride ever, a total of 110km. Aside from the chafing I felt really good. Note to self: do not do long rides in tri shorts you total dumbass and what the fuck were you thinking?

I haven't been in a lake since August 10th. I did so much lake swimming this Summer I suppose I grew tired of it and the thought of yanking my wetsuit on just didn't appeal to me, that and I was busy focusing on moving house/being social/having fun over the past month. Last night was the first time I've been in the pool in months. Man, do I ever appreciate lake swimming, and we sure are spoiled with what I think is THE nicest lake to swim in, Brohm Lake. The pool chemicals seem to affect me more and more as I age. I know that I should be swimming 3x per week minimum but that is not going to happen this Winter. I think the most my skin/nose/throat/hair can take is 2x a week, so that's that. My sinuses were so effed up last Spring by the end of pool swimming season, I'd like to avoid that this year.

Of course I got up to some other fun stuff but that'll have to wait for another post.

Making Gains

2011-05-01T07:47:00.000-07:00

It's nearly the end of week 3 of my cycle and recovery week is next week. I'll begin tapering next week for some races, and this was a big week for training. I had 4 days of dual workouts scheduled, but due to a morning sleep in I missed a swim, so I ended up doing 3 days of dual workouts in the week.

Yesterday I had a 1.5 hour bike followed by a run workout that I did at the track because it called for some sprints. I finished it, my breathing was out of control for most of the speed work, but I finished it. It was a tough brick, I hope week after next I feel stronger for it, I'm sure I will.

I rode my bike outside and I alternated between hot and sweaty and frozen like an ice cube. Mixed sun and cloud made dressing appropriately a challenge. My bike doesn't fit properly at the moment and I despise it. That's all on that topic for now, I'll get all upset and start cursing at my bike again.

Today makes me nervous. I have a 17km run to do. There was a point when I was thinking "my 1/2 marathon training is clashing with my Olympic distance triathlon training" but really, this isn't the case. If I wanted to do a 1/2 iron, I'd be doing long runs just like this so I had better suck it up.

From Couch to Coach

2011-04-15T11:39:00.000-07:00

I was thinking of changing the name of my blog to "From Couch to Coach". Seems appropriate...I'm a couch jockey by nature and now I'm working with a coach and it's like a 180 for me. I still hit the couch, especially on Sundays after my long runs...in fact sometimes I'm unable to get off the couch after my long run! Whenever I can these days I grab a moment on the couch but mostly I'm busy working and training. I'm on my 2nd month of training and I still feel like this was the best decision I could have made for myself at this time in my life. I'm happy. Tired and happy and learning that I am capable of more than I ever thought. I'm about to turn 30 and am finally getting to know myself. Huh. Wish I could have done this at the age of 20 but I'm a late bloomer I suppose, just starting to grow up now. And I guess it really is about finding something you enjoy, then it doesn't feel like an arduous, painful, mind numbing task (I'm thinking specifically about school here), it's so painful for me, seriously, a fucking drag, each and every moment of it. Training, though it's hard work, is far easier than school ever was. Even when my legs are searing with pain and I'm entirely out of breath and my lungs are screaming or I'm exhausted to the bone from working out, I'd take that any day over writing an essay or reading a textbook and writing an idiotic assignment. This seems to really suit me, I'm enjoying it, all of it.

The highlight of this week so far...actually there are two! On Tuesday I finally had legs fresh enough to enjoy the speed workout at the track. We did a pyramid, 200 metres, 400, 600, 800, 1000, 800, 600, 400, 200 with rests in between each set. My goal time was based on a previous 5km time trial, and that was 1:05/200 metres. I finished each and every set 7-13 seconds faster than my goal time. I'm actually getting faster, for the first time ever. I'm still one of the slowest, but I'm faster. Then to top it off, the next evening I had a kick ass CompuTrainer spin session and my legs, though tired, came through for me. I worked hard and pushed hard and managed to keep my RPMs up and my watts up and I didn't finish even close to last place (a first for me to), in fact I came in 2nd. I've also had a couple of relatively strong long runs over the past month.

My training is paying off, I'm seeing results, I had no idea I could do this!

return to the real world...postponed for now

2011-04-08T13:40:00.000-07:00

Wow, I've been busy since I returned from traveling Japan, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia. Busy on purpose, but still, not a lot of spare time for stuff like writing blog posts. I'm keeping myself busy busy so I don't have to think about the breakup, and I don't want to think too much about the fabulous beaches of Thailand...ahhh what a sweet 3 months that was. I highly recommend taking 3 months (or more) away from the daily grind, whatever the cost. Best thing I ever did for myself. And I'm currently working on the 2nd best thing I've ever done for myself...

I took up triathlon training with gusto and I'm 'all in' at the moment. I'm working with a coach for the very first time and so far so good. The structure is just what a person like me (lazy!) needs and I must say, I'm enjoying myself so much. Sure, my legs seem to always feel either like they've been pumped full of lead, or they're burning with fire...but I know I'm getting ever so slightly stronger and ever so slightly faster. I realize than an Olympic distance triathlon is no big deal for some, but for me it was. It is. I couldn't do those distances in around 3 hours without some serious training, so that's what I'm doing. It's fun. Really fun! And really hard, but in a fun way!

Tonight though, I'm going to indulge in a Cosmopolitan or five.

Napoleon Dynamite

2011-01-13T11:14:00.000-08:00

I called a really cute guy "Napoleon Dynamite" on New Year's Eve. We were partying, dancing in a bar with a bunch of other people and new found friends. He asked me why and I've no idea what my response was. He didn't look anything like Napoleon Dynamite. This guy was cute. Really cute. And I called him Napoleon Dynamite.

Real smooth Kathryn, real smooth. Clearly I'm out of practice.

Time for Lime cooking classes

2011-01-07T02:59:00.000-08:00

I have a huge, sharp knife. Look out.
Also? Somebody needs some facial oil blotting tissues, sheesh.

My plate, so fancy (for me)! It tasted good too, very good.

And what's an authentic Thai meal on the beach without an icy cold Chang beer? Ahhh bliss. PS we also made the crispy spring rolls!

I highly recommend the Time for Lime cooking classes on Koh Lanta, Thailand. We learned a lot of useful information about the ingredients and preparation of Thai food, ate some delicious grub and even had some fun along the way. The best part though? All of Time for Lime's profits go to Lanta Animal Welfare, the only animal shelter on Koh Lanta. They have done so much good for the cats and dogs on Lanta, and they have no support from other local businesses nor from the Thai government. The Thai community is also not involved enough to keep it running or help fund it. Visitors to Thailand are who help fund this place by donating to the shelter, and visiting Time for Lime. If you ever find yourself in Thailand on Koh Lanta, I highly recommend Time for Lime cooking classes...and if you don't feel like cooking yourself, their restaurant serves up THE VERY BEST food I ate in Thailand. They also have bungalows on site, and of course you can volunteer to walk dogs/spend time with cats at the Lanta Animal Welfare shelter just down the road.

Japan, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam

2010-12-21T05:28:00.000-08:00

Some shots from my trip.

Strolling in Chinatown, Bangkok.

Cars and bikes whizzing by me in Phnom Penh.

Same outfit, different day. Cruising in Kep, Cambodia.

Squinting in Siem Reap, Cambodia. What am I doing with my foot?

Near Angkor Wat temples, river of 1000 lingas, Cambodia.

Incense in a temple, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Le Loi street, Hoi An, Vietnam.

En route from Nha Trang to Danang.

Getting into the Christmas spirit, Before & Now restaurant/bar in Hoi An, Vietnam.

Inscense, Hue, Vietnam.

Hue, Vietnam. Just bein' a dork.

Me and my ex, overlooking the Huong River in Hue, Vietnam.

Gordon zipping down the stairs, Hue, Vietnam.

Lonely tree shrouded in mist, Sapa, Vietnam.

Sapa, Vietnam.

Banana & chocolate crepe + cappuccino, Sapa, Vietnam.

Lads on their way to school, Tokyo, Japan.

Cheers from Koh Lanta, Thailand.

Angor Wat area, Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Angkor Wat area, Siem Reap,Cambodia.

Angkor Wat, Cambodia.

Gordon and I, prior to the Angkor Wat race, Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Gordon and I at the HCMC Opera house, HCMC Vietnam.

Me making a strange face with a Chihuahua, Hoi An, Vietnam. The owner of the dog was frantically looking for him!

A new chapter

2010-12-17T17:10:00.000-08:00

I find myself a newly single woman again. I wish it weren't so but this is life, it doesn't always go to plan, and my ex and I are on incredibly good terms....we're currently traveling south east Asia together and having a blast! This is how a breakup should unfold, no?

When we return to Canada it will be time for me to carve out a new life for myself, including a new place to live. In some ways I'm excited for what's to come. During my travels I am reminded how much I enjoy and rely on a regular exercise routine so I'll make that a priority when I return. This will focus some of my attention, in a healthy and positive way and keep me fit & healthy too.

I participated in the Angkor Wat 1/2 Marathon event (I only had the 10km in me) while in Cambodia and I must say it was great fun to run a race in a different country and incredible to run around the Angkor Wat temple complex. If I could pull it off again I would return next year.

Angkor Wat Temple, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Here's to new beginnings!

running for therapy

2010-10-12T22:13:00.001-07:00

Running is good therapy. Thank Buddha for it!

A new adventure in the works

2010-09-17T11:03:00.001-07:00

I just read my last post from May. It doesn't even sound like me.

Since then, we've purchased, moved in and done a schwack of renovating to a new house. What a fucking shit show renovating is. I'll not take that on again without some serious consideration. We're still not finished and it seems the small things will never be done. I also feel like owning a house can go one of two ways - the first is where you live in a tidy house that's well maintained but you have no life. The other is where you actually have a life, and your house is a heap. Perhaps that's just my renovation, living out of a box for 3 months, constant filth and dust, no laundry, eating take out for months on end talking. Perhaps I'll recover from that trauma one day and I'll find a balance between maintaining a house and living my life.

Speaking of living my life, I'm getting the hell outta Dodge. The Mr. and I will be traveling from Oct 15th - Jan 15th. Southeast Asia, and perhaps Africa if we can swing it. Airfares prove to be tres expensive so we shall see where we get to, we may have to take Africa off the itinerary. I'm looking forward to this, it's the trip of a lifetime for me!! And this time, this time I'll be equipped with all of the antibiotics I can possibly fit in my pack. No stomach ailment will take me down this time.

As chic as Meryl Streep

2010-05-19T21:06:00.000-07:00

Meant to run for 40 ish minutes last night but we ended up running for 1:20. Oops! We did some exploring and mostly I just underestimated the trail. No worries though since we were loving the fresh air and tranquil forest. Must admit that the two of us are very wary of bears and we clapped and hooted and hollered a lot. A very lot. Hey, man, once you've had a bear RUN INTO YOU (or 2 bears, come running full tilt around a corner at you) then you'll do whatever it takes to not startle a bear again. And so we hooted and hollered our way through the trails and ended up in one piece...er two pieces..two intact pieces at our cars!

Just watched "It's complicated". Very funny. Alec Baldwin, THE Meryl Streep and Steve Martin, how can you go wrong really? I can only dream that I'm one fifth as chic as Meryl Streep in 25 years.

Some funky kitchens

2010-02-17T17:07:00.000-08:00

The Sunk kitchen. Low profile, so different from the usual layout. Love all of the windows and especially the ceiling material.

The Purple kitchen, just for fun! This person has a sense of humour and doesn't take themself too seriously.

The super chich kitchen. Love the design on the floor and the super glossy ceiling. It's dramatic but I can still see myself flipping a grilled cheese sammich in here.

My favourite of the four, because its simple and fresh and light and bright. I love the open, airy paint colours, they make this room.

meow

2010-02-10T09:18:00.000-08:00

There's a lot happening in our lives right now. Sold a house, sold a car, rental house we live in is being listed for sale. It's a lot (for me anyway) to process and though I'm swimming and running and yogaing I'm still experiencing anxiety over it. Chest crushing, laboured breathing, can't fall asleep type anxiety. This too shall pass, I know, I'm sure...I hope! Perhaps I don't deal well with change. Who knows? In any case, I thought a laugh was in order and these pictures make me laugh. All from this funny site, Icanhasacheezburger.com

a barn as a wedding venue

2010-02-03T21:47:00.000-08:00

Now don't get any ideas. I'm just posting these because I think they're the sweetest wedding venues! A wedding in a barn, how perfectly sweet. I am especially fond of the lighting in the first photo, how the stone becomes a focal point. It's warm and cozy.

Feb 3, 2010

2010-02-03T21:11:00.000-08:00

I'm loving parts of this room from
House Beautiful. I fancy the dark floors, the soft blue green wall colour, and the 2 chairs are. I could recreate this look, minus the busy headboard and matching drapes.

Jan 27,2010

2010-01-27T21:03:00.000-08:00

2,300 metre swim

200 warm up
5 x 100 (free)
100 - Hand flicks hip
100 - Armpit (thumb touches armpit)
100 - No idea, can't remember...?
100 - Deep - hand enters water and digs deep for pull
100 - Spread fingers
5 x 200 Free as - 5 x (75 Free, 25 Sprint all out, 75 Free, 25 Sprint all out)
5 x 100 as 50 scull, 50 pull
100 easy cool down

Hot tub!!

Jan 26th Running Intervals

2010-01-27T08:28:00.000-08:00

Last night I did running intervals with the local tri club in Squamish. There were 17 enthusiastic people out in the dark huffing and puffing their way around Valleycliff. Here's what we did and here's why my legs are J.E.L.L.O today:

Warm up run
3minutes at 5k race pace
2 minutes easy jog
7 minutes at 10km race pace
2 minutes easy jog
5 minutes at 10km race pace
2 minutes easy jog
5 minutes at 10km race pace
2 minutes easy jog
3 minutes at 5km race pace
2 minutes easy jog
3 minutes at 5k race pace
Cool down run

I forsee a hot tub session in my near future...right after masters swimming tonight in fact! Possibly followed by a "gentle yoga" session. I'll sleep like the dead I will.

Just another manic Monday

2010-01-25T18:45:00.001-08:00

I'll feel less guilty if I expunge myself of this piece of lingering guilt now. I'm totally not into my project management course right now. Not even a little. I felt burnt out in December, and though I had time off to rest and relax, I've not quite got my head into it again. Yet. It's boring the hell out of me, writing essay after essay. Writing essays has to be one of my least favourite methods of learning. Thankfully, we're in a part of the course where we can dick around a little without being penalized. I'm clearly not the only one feeling this way either, seems as though others in the class are experiencing similar feelings.

It's nigh on time to get back "into it" for the final 3 months, though. I wonder if I can trick myself into enjoying it? The afternoon of April 9th will be a happy time indeed, for that's when I'm all finished with the course. Let the countdown begin, and let the learning begin.

I donated some $ to the Canadian Red Cross for Haiti. Their servers were overwhelmed so I had to try submitting my donation several times. I checked my VISA statement today, they processed it thrice! They're all over it though, and are working to reverse the additional transactions, or so their e-mail response states. To be quite honest I almost feel guilty asking them to correct the error, but I donated what I could for now and will try to donate more later. After all, the immediate need was indeed great but it's the rebuilding that will go on for years to come that will also require significant funds. Médecins Sans Frontières also received a donation from me, they do great things.

I rustled up 13 pairs of shoes to be shipped to Haiti too! A shoe store in Park Royal was collecting and shipping them to Haiti. I hope someone who really needs a pair of shoes receives them. One person had a chuckle at me because in addition to running shoes and sneakers, I added some high heels. I pointed out that people in Haiti work office jobs too, and if their belongings are under a pile of rubble, perhaps they'd appreciate a pair of shoes to wear to work, once they're able to go back. Perhaps it was a bad idea, but I figured I'd send em anyway, just in case. Right?

I also want to share with you how much I'm suffering right now. After my completely fabulous flow yoga class yesterday I felt like a million bucks. The class was really tough, but fun. Tough as in shaking muscles, complete and utter fatigue, had to rest in childs pose a few times tough. I definitely worked hard, I was sweating enough that my hands were slipping off the mat. In any case, I never dreamed I'd experience this when I woke up this morning. This being the obvious annihilation of my muscles. All of them. Every. Last. One. It hurt to brush my teeth this morning and it only went downhill from there. I couldn't understand what was wrong with me! I wondered if I was coming down with a nasty flu. Nay, it was the yoga! I guess that means I need to keep going, if only so it doesn't hurt so badly after. Good thing I bought myself the new student 1 month unlimited pass! Between now and THE DAY I LEAVE FOR KAUAI I have unlimited access to yoga. Me thinks this is sweet.

Intervals (race pace timed repeats I believe) tomorrow night ought to be fun given how sore my every muscle is. I'm cringing at the thought. Wish me luck!

nap time

2010-01-24T12:27:00.000-08:00

This bed looks so comfortable I feel like taking a nap!

I adore this master bedroom. It's a perfect blend between masculine and feminine. It's by Helen Green as seen on Willow Decor's blog. It's traditional but not stuffy. I could easily read a book on that lovely blue tufted sofa.

Dinner, January 23rd, 2010

2010-01-23T20:42:00.000-08:00

Shittake mushroom broth with tofu and green onions and just a touch of miso.
Miso glazed Salmon, Sauteed Brocoli and Bok Choy in soy sauce, sesame oil and sesame seeds served with coconut rice.

The Bok Choy and Brocoli in the pan!

my new obsession

2010-01-19T07:09:00.000-08:00

I am currently slightly obsessed with this woman and her crazy, sweet (sappy but I love it anyway) love story and her great big happy family. I am definitely a cowgirl deep down and living on a working ranch with horses, cattle, dogs, horses, cats, ranch hands, horses....now that does make my heart go pitter patter. Never mind the cowboy husband!! Oh my! Be still my beating heart.

I may have to order The Pioneer Woman's new cookbook too. Her website/blog has some of her recipes posted. They look absolutely scrumptious. She even posts step by step instructions for the recipes for non-chefs like me. Ranch grub, filling and tasty.

Last night was an interval running workout with the local triathlon club the Squamish Titans. We were working on hills. It became apparent rather quickly that Christmas has fully and completely caught up with me. I'm heavy and out of shape and I have some work to do in the coming months. My legs had only one gear; slow.

Tonight was a fun 2,200 metre swim with the Masters. Still loving having our coach, it makes the workouts more focused and more fun not to mention we work way harder with someone on deck.

Leaving you with this image, a blue bedroom. Calm and serene.

miso glazed salmon

2010-01-16T12:02:00.000-08:00

I really love this room! Spacious, rustic, original, warm. The beams that make up the wall and the vaulted ceiling are fantastic! I could easily fit this room out with some cozy rugs, a sofa and armchairs, warm, ambient lamps and soft, fluffy blankets. Voila, ultra cozy, yet rustic living room.

I went for a beauty trail run this morning. The sun shone here today, if you can believe it. Just yesterday I was beginning to think the rain would never cease, and sure enough blue sky and rays of sun!! As always in Winter I can't help but think "what the fuck am I doing living here where it's grey and cloudy and rainy for so many months of the year" and "why the fuck am I not living where it's warm and sunny year round". *sigh* One day, I swear I'll be living in the sunshine!

For dinner tomorrow I'm going to attempt miso glazed salmon with rice and to start, tofu and scallions in shitake (sp?) mushroom broth. If I don't ruin it, I think it will be lovely!

The ladies and I were talking about upcoming races this Spring and we seemed to draw a collective blank. The best races are in the Summer and Fall...nothing fun comes to mind for Spring. We'll have to do some research. It's time to set some goals for ourselves. If you know of any mind-blowing fun fun fun races in the lower mainland between now and July, drop me a line.

December is nuts

2009-12-13T06:29:00.000-08:00

December is nuts. Nuts to the point of almost being no fun. It's non-stop stuff to do, parties to attend, and Christmas shopping until Dec 25th. I don't mind being busy so long as I have breaks here and there to catch my breath and enjoy some quiet down time. There simply aren't many opportunities to do that in December. I look forward to December 25th when I can have a couple of days to do nothing but read and relax!

Happy Holidays to all and I hope you have a moment to relax soon!!!

Summer to date

2009-08-21T03:53:00.000-07:00

This has been the most fun summer of my life. In large part because let's face it, I haven't worked much at all but also due to my many getaways out of town on vacation. Here's how it went down:

July long w/e surfing in Oregon with Amy. Amy and I left at 5am Saturday and made it to the border where we waited, and waited, and waited. It took us about 12 hours to reach Cannon Beach, it was a long ass day. Cannon Beach was insanely busy Saturday and I couldn't wait to get out of there so we rented my gear from the surf shop and hightailed it outta Cannon Beach off to Nehalem where we camped. By the way, the Americans know how to build a nice campsite-this place was nicer than any campground I've ever seen in Canada. We drove to Oswald State Park every day for some surfing (plus a 1km walk to the beach with our boards and gear) where Amy rocked it and ate shit. Nevermind that I'm absolutely awful at it because I had lots of fun.

After that I did actually go to work but nevermind work...I spent a night at Gambier Island and caught up with friends. We ate tasty food, relaxed and rested (ok I relaxed and rested) and Rob and I did a nice walk up to Gambier Lake where the water was fine.

Following Gambier I was off to Vancouver where I met up with Joanne and we did the Kits Challenge, an open water swim event in the ocean!! It was a nice 1,500 metre event, so a good introduction to swimming in the ocean. I was nervous but the event was very relaxed and it wasn't scary swimming in the ocean at all so I'm glad I went. It was a positive experience and ended as all events should, with some nice people making waffles for breakfast.

Bear Scare!!!!!!!!!

2009-08-15T12:07:00.000-07:00

This morning while running with 2 friends we ran into 2 bears. We were heading North on a main trail with thick bush on either side. There’s also a side trail that twists in and out, in and out, of the main trail. I was running about 25 feet in front my friends. All of a sudden, 20 feet in front of me a sizeable black bear comes barreling around the bend. I let out a blood-curdling scream when I realized that the bear hadn’t stopped short immediately and that it was still running towards me. I shouted to my friends that there was a bear and I began clapping my hands and yelling as I backed away from the bear towards my friends. The bear was still running and it veered away to my left onto the side trail and then ANOTHER bear came running around the same bend, this bear also veered off onto the side trail. There was very brief talk of whether or not we should continue heading North, stay put while the bears got away, or retreat and get out of the trail heading South. At this point I had backed up to where my friends were and I even passed them and I was encouraging us to retreat out of the trail back onto a paved road. I was back in the front and jogging South out of the trail, and we were all yelling and clapping as we jogged. So now I’m back in front of my friends jogging South and holy shit one of the bears pops out of the side trail on my left, the bear was heading the same way as were were, it had criss crossed the path several times behind us! I began yelling in earnest all over again and the bear did an about turn and took off North along the trail away from us. Finally the bears and the humans were heading in opposite directions. We humans hoofed it another 20 metres South where we all popped out of the trail and onto a road. We had just begun to collect ourselves when both bears pop out of the trail too! More yelling and clapping and this time there was space for them to head away from us and that’s what they did, this time they went East. Our heart rates were through the roof! After that we adjusted our run route and stuck to paved roads for the rest of the run.

Must say I felt sorry for the poor bears, they were frightened and wanted nothing to do with us and nothing to do with whatever it was they were originally running from.

I must chalk this up to a positive bear experience though it did scare the shit out of me. It just was bad luck that we encountered each other in a really small area full of twisting and winding trails where we just could not get away from each other….that and the fact that I was separated from my girlfriends so the bears did get between us at one point I think.

My last bear experience was about a month ago and it was a good one too. I was again running slightly ahead of the same 2 girlfriends when I spotted a bear. It stopped, I stopped and told my friends that there was a bear just ahead and I began yelling and clapping immediately. The bear took off into the bush and we didn’t see it again and we continued on our run.

So 2 positive bear experiences are a good thing (if you have to have them at all) but I must say that I’ll have the vision of a bear running around the corner right at me for awhile.

Done

2009-08-03T17:22:00.000-07:00

This is on the return trip to Garibaldi Lake last weekend. It was really hot that day and I was done and done. 3km left and I just wanted to be at the lake floating on a pool noodle.

10 years?!?

2009-05-26T08:22:00.000-07:00

My 10 year high school reunion is in 2 weeks. What??? I'm not ready! I still don't even know what I want to do with myself "when I grow up". Oh well, it's here whether I'm ready or not so I plan to have some fun with some of my old friends. I only wish my prom dress still fit!!

April Fools swim workout

2009-04-02T09:11:00.000-07:00

A fun swim last night...it went something like this:

20 x 50 free with fins and paddles as:

4 drill, 1 build
2 drill, 3 descending 1-3
3 drill, 2 build
1 drill, 4 descending 1-4

300 metres free - pull
8 x 50 on 55 seconds - free
300 metres free - pull
8 x 50 on 55 seconds - free ** I wasn't up for the 2nd round so just did regular, easy free

600 cool down - double arm back, catchup fly, choice, back etc.

I'm moving to a new place!! The boyfriend and I have rented ourselves a sweet townhouse right on a golf course. There are plenty of bedrooms, a lovely spacious kitchen, and even a couple of fireplaces! I'll start moving next week and we should be all settled in for May. I can't wait, this new place is truly home sweet home!!!

Peace & love,
Foxtrot

my blogging is not up to date

2009-02-03T12:56:00.000-08:00

My last post was Nov 27th - way to keep up the blog Fox.

Since my last post I went to India and Nepal and spent a couple of days (sick) in Thailand. Will post something soon!!

: )

Uh oh

2008-11-27T06:59:00.000-08:00

Bit of trouble in both India and Thailand these days. Terrorist attacks in Mumbai and the closure of the Bangkok airport with anti-government protestors. Selfishly I hope it clears up prior to my departure, I am really excited to see those parts of the world and to change my plans at this point might not be possible and would definitely be a gigantic hassle.

Here's to hoping things settle down.

the countdown is on

2008-11-24T18:33:00.000-08:00

16 days till I leave for India. : ) huuuaaaaa!!!! pretty excited

Pumpkin Butter

2008-11-12T22:04:00.000-08:00

Martha Stewart I'm not however I gave canning a first try tonight anyway. I attempted to make my own pumpkin butter. I had to wrestle with a live pumpkin to cut it up into manageable chunks to cook first and that was an ordeal in itself. I was sweating. Perhaps I need a sharper knife.

Anyway I followed the canning instructions and recipe to a T and hopefully tomorrow morning I'll find some lovely jars, with the snap lids curving down, in my kitchen. I had a wee bit leftover so I dumped it into an unsanitized jar and I plan to eat it...after all what harm is a little Botulism? Botox I say! The butter is delicious if I do say so myself.

One jar, upon removing it from the canner pot thingy, lost it's bottom clean off. That sucked because the recipe was fully blood sweat and tears and produced only 6 jars so I'm down to 5 now. Urgh.

Apparently North America is having a hard time with the particular lemon crop that's used to make ReaLemon juice (new crop expected late 2009) and that's unfortunate because I need 2 tablespoons of it if I'm to make more pumpkin butter. And let's face it, I'm no whiz in the kitchen so for me it's practice makes perfect so it would be great if I could make some more soon! I even have enough pumpkin to make more.

Here's what blood, sweat, tears, 1 beer, some cursing, and some cheezy Christmas music produced tonight.

Mmm!

I swam with Masters tonight but it was such a boring workout that I quit 10 minutes early. We did a warm up then 500 metres of kicking and pulling then...2,000 metres of free with fins. 2,000 metres of just free, all with fins. Umm...fuck that, I think not. (I've decided to stop being so polite in my blog and be more like my real self. My real self uses salty language). I was bored and cold so I quit the workout in favour of the hot tubby!

Cheerio,

Foxtrot

My weekend & sort of Squamish tri race report

2008-07-13T14:41:00.001-07:00

My weekend started with me taking Friday off work. Good call Fox. Slept in and made it to Whistler and rode my bike from the North end of Whistler to Pemberton where I stopped to chat on the phone, ate some almonds, quickly decided that there was no way in hell I was going to return to Whistler under my own steam. I continued my ride out to Pemberton Meadows way to the Hurley turn off where I turned around and rode back to Pemby. I hung out at the Pony for a coffee then had a yummy lunch at the Wildwood (nice patio, good food!) and then we made our way to Gates lake for a quick dip in the lake. Must remember to take more Fridays off!

Saturday morning went for a quick trail run. I felt like a bag of smashed bag of a**holes - I dogged it, big time. After le shitty run I popped over to the farmers market to meet a friend, we shopped a bit then I had to pick up my race package. Met some girlfriends after package pick up for coffee then found that I pretty much falling apart and so a longish nap was in order. Post nap I made my way to the lake for some skin damage and girly gossip, good times. Yummy supper prepared in part by yours truly then bedtime.

Up at at em this morning at a reasonable hour and off to body marking where I met the runner on our team. Off to the swim where I ran into all kinds of peeps then it was time to hit the lake. Did the swim, felt pretty cruisey and mellow, enjoyed myself as always. Came out of the water to hand the timing chip off and noticed there were still quite a few relay cyclists waiting for their swimmers. I took the bus down to the school and watched the racers and turns out our Squamish Titans did really well!! Most of us had a pretty great day!

Last I checked our female relay team placed 2nd - who knew? Certainly not me. Had I known that we even had a chance at placing I would have given it my everything in the swim. I'm such a slacker. Anyway my 1,500 metre swim was 26:19.

Had lunch with the girls and husbands after the race then squeezed in a nice 53km ride with Cathy this evening. I really love weekends!

I've come a long way baby

2008-07-07T09:05:00.000-07:00

Saturday: drive from Squamish to Cannon Beach, Oregon
Sunday: surfing at Oswald State Park in Oregon
Monday: surfing at Oswald State Park in Oregon
Tuesday: drive home from Oregon & 30min road ride to get ants out of my pants
Wednesday: lake swim, then mega vomiting all night long!
Thursday: vomiting and recovering
Friday: vomiting and recovering
Saturday: lake swim
Sunday: 1 hour trail run (my bday!)
Monday: lake swim
Tuesday: group trail run, 1:15, hills
Wednesday: 5am hike up Chief, 5:30 lake swim
Thursday: day off, to VanCity for Monty Python's Spamalot

Surfing at Oswald over the long weekend was SO MUCH FUN. I'll post the few pics I have later. I sucked bad at surfing but plan to take a lesson in Tofino soon. I really enjoyed myself in Oregon and hope to return there!

The Squamish triathlon is this Sunday; I'm doing the swim as part of a relay team. Apparently we now have a very fast runner who wants to "get together" the day before....I sincerely hope she doesn't take this business of relaying a tri too seriously 'cause I don't and am there to have fun! I'll have to see how it goes but am feeling good about my swimming and am having lots of fun with it these days. I even swam by myself last night. Let me repeat, I swam byMYSELF in the lake. I didn't even freak out once! I've come a long way baby!

5am departure for the long weekend

2008-06-27T22:25:00.000-07:00

Amy and I are heading to Oregon tomorrow morning at 5am, we have 4 days off work!!!! We're off to Oswald State Park to surf! She surfs but I've never surfed so this should be an experience!

Wish me luck. Will post details/pics when I get back next week. Happy Canada Day!

NB 1/2 Iron RR

2008-06-27T21:24:00.000-07:00

Dad at 5:00am, race day. Looking pretty chipper!

I think I'm due to provide a race report so here goes!

Last Friday I drove to my cousins place where I met up with my Dad who came over from the Okanagan to race too. He and I relayed the New Balance 1/2 Iron in Victoria. I swam, he biked, I ran. My cousin did the whole thing solo. A bunch of other friends did the race too so we were in good company.

Friday night consisted of pizza from the Steveston Pizza Co (soo yummy!) and Guitar Hero. That's right, Guitar Hero. It really should be part of everyone's pre-race prep. At one point I was worried that the cramping in my hand might have a negative effect come race day but I played on. I got Torb and I booed off stage once. Oops. Guitar Hero is fun and I want my own!

We were up and at em early Saturday morning for the ferry boat over to Vancouver Island. When got there we drove a good portion of the bike course (I napped and at one point woke up with my gob wide open...classy as always) then ate some lunch at the Blue Fox. Off we all went to the race venue to sign in, pick up our stuff and sit in on the "mandatory" pre-race meeting. Hmm.

After the meeting we checked ourselves into the hotel and then we had dinner for 10of us 'athletes' at the Macaroni Grill. We all went to bed pretty early due to ridiculously early wake up at 4:30am.

OK ok here's the meat portion of this post: I hop in the water about 1 minute before the friggin' cannon goes off (I near shat my wetsuit it was so loud and scared me so badly) and then off we went. As always I stayed on the edge of the crowd. I don't like people all up in my space when I swim and I'd hate to have to rip somebody's goggles off. I found a pretty sweet spot and just cruised the entire swim. I was comfortable and daydreamed most of the way, it was very enjoyable. At one point I did think to myself that perhaps one day I'll actually race a race. You know, give it my all and leave nothing in the tank. One day soon actually. Right towards the very end of the swim I had another thought and that was "hmm...people were talking about how warm the water is and how there's a ton of geese shit in the water...I wonder how much goose crap I've consumed so far...I wonder if I should have been more careful about keeping my mouth shut up tight...damn...I just swallowed some goose poo I bet.....I hope this doesn't give me the runs on the run". I found myself at the end of the swim and out I get to run up to the bike transition to tag my Dad off. Oh what's this? I'm at the bike, but Dad's not! Umm...this is a friggin' relay Dad, you're supposed to be here. I spot him, I yelled "Dude, get over here" and we manage to get the chip transferred to him and off he goes. He told me that he wasn't expecting me out of the water so soon. Harumph.

So Dad's off on the bike and since he did a 600km bike ride the weekend previous and based on his IMC bike times I had calculated 3 hours to chillax before the run. Nice. I change, eat, and indeed I chillax. I parked my ass on Cathy's beach blanket and gossiped with T & C and read my book and just rested up. At one point I was feeling like it was time to eat and pee so I put the book down, turned around and happend to glance up. Ahhh...what the? "Wait, is that my DAD?! Oh my god that's my Dad. OMFG. Oh Fuck! Oh FUCK!" I tied up my shoes, stripped my hoody and put my running shirt and race number on, swiped a gel and holy shit I was running. I was running. I was running down through the bike transition and onto the course. I kept thinking "I can't be here, I can't be running NOW. I'm not ready. I didn't pee or eat or tie up my pony tail or anything". I started sucking on the gel and just kept running. My heart rate was way high. I ran faster than I normally would and it was b/c I was all pumped and full of adrenaline due to the shock of being out earlier than expected. By about 20 minutes! Yeah Dad had a stellar bike. Too bad I can't run fast otherwise we would have done quite well! That, I expect, was the first and only time I'll be out running with those fast bastards. It was a fun experience and I'll remember it for some time!

Me at the very end of the run, rather happy that it's over.

A few minutes into the run all that I could think was "what the hell am I doing here with these fast people, this is sooo wrong, I don't belong here". Still I kept running and got passed over and over and over. The first 10km was fine and I felt good. The second 10km felt crappy. My stomach was having none of it and so towards the end I was just jogging along at the only pace I could manage. I saw a snake too, so that sucked. A 70 year old man and I kept playing leap frog which I must admit keeps me more than a little humble. There was also a 30 something year old man who kept passing me so I'd work to catch up and pass him and that helped me finish when I really just wanted a crapper and some tp all to myself.

Joanne being a happy after the swim!! She raced a PB this race!

The run ended. I found the porta pottie and felt better soon after that visit. A quick handful of pretzels, a half a banana and a drink and I got changed into dry clothes and was dropped off at the ferry to head for home. I fell asleep on the ferry and even with that little nap I managed to miss a turn coming off the ferry. I ended up in friggin' Delta and New Westminster. Duh Fox. Cripes. Must pay attention to signage!

Dad and I on race morning at 5am.

So thanks to Dad for racing with me, again. Thanks Joanne & Torb for having us over, again, and hanging out with us and showing us the ropes.

I'm due to swim the Squamish tri in a few weeks and I'm thinking that perhaps this time I will give the swim a real effort and not worry about having anything left in the tank after. We'll see!!

What the EFF

2008-06-15T17:10:00.000-07:00

Wednesday - our office went out for a "social" and most of us got completey hammered AND we all had a fantastic time. We started with mini golf (actual greens, no clowns or windmills) at 1:00pm and we ran out of booze pretty quick. We then went to an actual golf course where we proceeded to drinks many many shots and other drinks. We were eventually cut off of shots when some of the Squamish contingent started chanting a Squamish chant that had words that I shall not repeat here...so you know if I won't say them here, then a fancy pants golf course was definitely not the venue for the chant. So we got boozey and moved on to one of the staffs homes where the partaaay continued...someone barfs, someone passess out and the rest of us party on.

Thursday - The next day half the office came to work very late and the other half didn't make it in at all. Nice work folks. I for one tried to work but after half an hour of the spins at my desk I relocated my ass back onto a couch until 6pm. Then I caught a ride home and went back on the couch until bed. Everyone had fun at our social, it was a success and just what we needed! I for one partied my ass off and put the "No Fun K" nickname to rest for a time. I'm now working on EFF. Extra Fun Fox.

Friday - Hangover almost gone, back to work. Excellent trail run Friday pm, then home to bed. (that's 2 good runs in a week!)

Saturday - Woke up at 4:30 am couldn't go back to sleep so cleaned up my house. Met up with the girls for a swim in Alice Lake. Spectated thes Test of Metal for an hour but was in a daze and required a nap so went home to do that. Walked some dogs in the afternoon and had dinner with a friend.

Sunday - Skipped the long run in favour of a shorter easy run. Came home had some breakfast and then it was nap time because I didn't sleep well at all Saturday night, my clock is all messed up and I keep waking up at wonky times. Spent the afternoon reading at Alice Lake, lovely day and had to be outside. Went for a walk in the evening and made dinner (yes I made it myself!!) for a friend who so far has not reported in with food poisoning.

And now it's Monday. Ick.

please don't send the bear our way

2008-05-18T10:31:00.000-07:00

New animal count: 18 bears, 14 deer, 1 coyote, 2 dead snakes

Long run today, mostly dirt road and trail. 2hrs5 minutes. Probably about 17km or so. There were some hills. Some rather big ones actually.

At one point we came across a black bear, he was about 200 metres away. On the other side of the bear an equal distance away were a group of people and dogs. We yelled but the bear didn't move. Then one of the dogs started towards the bear....we took off because it looked like the bear would end up running from the bear towards us!! It ended up heading into the bush so we continued on our way, though there was a spike in heartrate. I am sooo done after that run. I hurt. It was great.

Marvelous!

2008-05-17T20:36:00.000-07:00

Friday afternoon I had a brutal trail run. I wasn't expecting 30 degrees for one and I think I was wicked dehydrated so I felt like a bag of smashed assholes the entire run. I drank and drank and drank water but I had a severe headache still. Later on that night someone convinced me to drink some gatorade...worked like a charm and I felt better soon after. I'll be making note of that for future runs/bikes/hikes etc. in hot weather.

This morning I had a 40km road ride in the sunshine. It was a truly perfect sunny day and a gorgeous day to ride a bike. For the 2nd time in 3 days a man who passed us in his truck (he was going the opposite direction) turned around, drove back to us just to let us know that we were heading towards a juvenile bear. What a nice guy! We kept riding but didn't see the bear. Prolly cause I was yodelling my head off the for the rest of the ride.

Total animal count to date: 17 bear, 14 deer, 1 coyote, 2 dead snakes. I hate snakes and dead's how I like em.

After my bike I spent the rest of the day outside in the sunshine (with sunscreen on of course). It was marvelous and I really love Squamish even more when the sun shines.

Sumfing just brushed my leg!

2008-05-15T21:24:00.001-07:00

I stole this from somebody else's blog but it made me laugh so much, I just had to share it. The caption is "Did I mention that the World's swim is in the ocean...."

This is ME in any open water. That's exactly how I feel when I'm swimming in a lake and it's even worse in the ocean. JUST. LIKE. THIS. SEAL.

zzz

2008-05-11T18:05:00.000-07:00

Last minute I came to the Okanagan for the weekend and unlike most people who head up here for their bike rides and runs...I come here to catch up on sleep. That's right, I sleep. I go to bed early, I wake up late and I even nap. I don't usually nap (maybe that's why when I get here I need to sleep a lot). Anyway that's what I'm up to this weekend...zzzz. It's Mother's day too so I'm hanging out with Mom : )

This was taken a few years ago when I was not having a nap.

a lot of free

2007-11-08T20:43:00.000-08:00

Wednesday night's swim went like this:

200 free
200 kick with fins
200 paddles (er something veryclose to this..I can never remember the warmups exactly)

4 x 50

50 free with fins
50 free no fins
50 free with paddles
50 free with no paddles

10 x 100 free, 15 secs rest after the last person is in (we did this on 1:40 for the most part)

10 x 50 free, same as above (we did this between 45-50 seconds)

100 easy choice cool down & some sweet hot tub action

I led our lane for the 10 x 100 and for the 10 x 50 so I pushed myself to keep it quick and maintain a decent pace. A fun workout!

Cathedral Lake Provincial Park - photos

2007-10-20T07:29:00.000-07:00

Cathedral Lakes

2007-10-16T06:18:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I haven't posted in a month! Things have been busy and I guess I just haven't had the time.

At the end of September I was on vacation for one week and went hiking in Cathedral Lakes Provincial Park for four days - fun times!! The lodge* up there was pretty cool too-I highly recommend this trip for at least one night but no more than three. Beautiful scenery, easy hiking, a great trip overall. Had a great time with my Dad there. We hung out at the lodge and drank tea, read books, I smoked us out of the cabin cause I don't know how to use a damper properly, we hiked by day of course and had a very quiet and relaxing trip. A father daughter trip! How lucky am I?

* The lodge is a privately owned lodge that sits in a Provincial Park. There's a Provincial park campground right beside the lodge for campers.

I hitched home

2007-07-10T22:34:00.000-07:00

So the tri was on Sunday and last night was Monday and I went for a mellow swim in the lake, wetsuit free. I pushed myself for approx. 100 metres but I really need to start working harder in the lake. I need to find some swimming buddies who are faster than me as that will push me to work harder.

Today I was driving to work and my car beeped at me. I couldn't find the origin of the beep so I kept on driving. I assumed that it was CBC that made the odd beep sound. Then Templeton (that's the name of my car) began beeping furiously at me and then the oil warning light came on. I pulled over and shut the car off right away. Thankfully I was about half a kilometre from work so I just got out and walked to the office where I called BCAA and had them tow Templeton to my mechanic. I still haven't heard from the mechanic so I don't know what the problem was. Hopefully it's simply a faulty something or other.

Since I had no car of my own I thumbed* a ride home and I got dropped off at Alice Lake so that I could run home. I just kept my house keys and my cell with me and off I went. I was scared of bears and cougars but I got over it. It's a really short run from my place to Alice Lake. Just down Jacks Trail and then through the new golf course and I'm pretty much there. I maybe wasn't quite ready to run though as I had to walk the last 3 or so kilometres due to leg pain. But I do feel confident that I'm on the mend and this was just sore muscles giving me grief. I'm so ready to run and run lots! I wanna get fast and fit and build some endurance. And I've got my heart set on doing some runs in the Fall. A half here, a 1okm there....fun stuff!

While I'm building up to the running regime that I'd like to follow I'll hit the bikes (mountain and road) and the lake. Oh and I'm going to surf camp next weekend!!

Over and out.

* Honestly I would never hitchhike. I got a ride home with someone that I know.

RR - Squamish Triathlon

2007-07-10T21:57:00.000-07:00

Race Report

The days before the triathlon found me at physio appointments. Not exactly encouraging but I was doing what I could to get my calf and other leg issues fixed. On Saturday I tried to run and it was pretty damned painful. Every step hurt like hell. I panicked and asked someone if they could do the run for our relay team because I was so positive that I wouldn't be able to do it. Thankfully that person politely declined. Then I went home and cried about it. Then I put myself down for a nap and when I woke up I felt much better and a little more optimistic. Yes I missed my nap and I was cranky.

On race day I got up, had half of a bagel and a latte from Starbucks (coffee on race day is very important!) and off I went to Don Ross to meet up with my cyclist and to get myself checked in. I saw lots of people that I knew and met up with KM* who was good enough to drive up from Vancity to ride the bike portion of the race. She and I took the last bus up to Alice Lake where I made my way to the bathroom and crammed myself into my wetsuit and headed over to the lake with a few minutes to spare. My cousin spotted me and gave me a hug and wished me luck before the race. It was good to see a familiar face and hear some encouraging words from a family member who also happens to be a triathlete! She asked if I wanted some Bodyglide for my wetsuit and though I hadn't been having problems the week before I also hadn't been swimming for a solid 1/2 hour in the suit. I did get chaffed and man did I regret not lubing up. Lesson learned.

The relayers were the last group of swimmers to enter the water and off we went. I took it easy. Really easy. I didn't push myself much if at all. I really wanted to conserve my energy as I was anticipating a brutal run. I came out of the water just shy of 31 minutes. I'm confident that I could beat that by 4 minutes. Maybe next time I'll be in better shape and I will! AT suggested that I be careful to not set the bar too high....she called it her sandbagging theory I think...I like it, good plan AT!

So after the swim there was a whole bunch of waiting around for the bus to take us down to the bike run transition. That's one challenge with this race, that the transitions are in different locations. I happened to run into my physiotherapist after the swim though at the time I didn't know what wonders she had worked on my calf so I didn't think her. I will next time I see her!

I got to see K ride by to do her last lap of the ride and she heard me shout. She had a great ride, I was really impressed. As soon as she racked her bike I grabbed the chip and fastened it to my ankle and off I went.

Up and over those stupid stairs and up the trail to the right. Immediately I was breathing really hard, but I always do that at the beginning of a run. About 5 minutes into the run I realized that my calf wasn't hurting at all. I was surprised and really relieved. I wasn't sure if I would remain pain free for the entire run but I was hopeful. The first 3km of the run felt good, I was feeling just fine. Then nearing the start of the 2nd loop I could really tell that I hadn't been running properly for the past month. My body was just tired and my muscles, all of the muscles that you use for running, were really fatigued. They wanted to quit right now. I was not happy for the second lap and I just wanted the run to be over in the worst way. I kept telling myself that it was only February that I had run twice the distance and I didn't need to walk any of that. Though that was 5 months ago and that's more than enough time to lose significant fitness. So I made it to the end...onto the track and across the finish line. Done and Done.

I counted that I drank at least 6 times during the 10km run. I thought that 6 times was excessive given that were it a 10km training run I wouldn't drink at all unless it was extremely hot. I last peed before 9am and then not again until 2pm. Hmmm....I was probably a little dehydrated so next time I'll drink more before the race.

So that's done and over with. On to the next race/event.

*KM and I both had big dreams of doing the entire tri by ourselves. Our dreams were dashed when she confessed that she "really sucked at training for the swimming and running" and I decided that I couldn't bike and run on consecutive days because my legs felt like lead when I did. We both saw that we would make up the ideal relay team. I wanted to swim and run, she wanted to bike! A match made in heaven really.

this week

2007-06-27T19:30:00.000-07:00

Sunday 23rd - 5km run in PISSING rain. Not 5 minutes after I got home from run, the sun came out. Left calf not good and 10km run turned into 5km because of it.

Monday 24th - 2400 metre swim. Wicked awesome swim! Very happy about increased distance.

Tuesday 25th - 8km trail run - Left calf very not good. Walked much of this run. Ran past bear and did not lose bowel control. Yay!

Work work work. Sleep, eat, drive to work, eat, work, run, work some more, eat then work more again, drive home from work, sleep, get up for work, repeat.

2km

2007-06-15T21:55:00.000-07:00

Tonight's swim:

100 easy
50 kick
50 pull
6 x 100 on 30 sec rest
150 pull
3 x 50 back/breast
200 IM (substituted fly for free)
300 continuous free-steady pace
50 breast
50 back
2 x 100 free on 30 seconds rest
100 easy

Total: 2km

Off to bed as it's back to the office tomorrow. I'm missing (spectating) the Test of Metal tomorrow because of work so that sucks but I'll be cheering everyone on. Here's a shot from last year.

Happy Sunday indeed!

2007-04-29T20:45:00.000-07:00

What a weekend. It was gorgeous and sunny and that made me and everybody else that I saw so happy. And so did my workouts today! I got up early and went for a trail run around some of my favorite trails in Squamish. Up and around Alice Lake provincial park.

Then I had a really yummy latte (I really love my coffee and had really been looking forward to it) before heading off to VanCity for some shopping with a girlfriend. Shopping reminded me that I really need to lose some lbs....my weight* isn't ideal right now and it sure makes running (and trying on clothes) a painful ordeal. In any case we had an awesome time today cruising highway 99 with the sun roof open and our tunes on.

I finished off the evening with a swim at the pool and had a fantastic workout! If I did my math correctly (I probably didn't but whatever) I did 400 metres in 6 minutes. If I could swim at that pace I could complete a 1.6 km swim in 24 minutes. That would please me. We'll see though....not sure that I can maintain that pace knowing there's a 40km ride followed by a 10km run immediately after.

Run: 1:05

Swim: 1000 metres

*I'm super chubby right now!!!!

2007-04-13T06:58:00.000-07:00

Last night I went for a run with Cathy sort of around and about the Squamish tri route trails.....we did stray off a trail but only for a a minute or so. My legs still feel like lead and I'm stiff and awkward when I run. I maybe haven't lost all of my fitness but I've lost a lot of it! Plus I gained much of the weight back that I had lost (not happy about that!) so that doesn't make running any easier. It's no wonder runners are encouraged to keep their weight down. It just hurts to run when you're hefty. Trust me. It's like running with a half a dozen steaks stuffed down your shorts and up your shirt. LOL !! And things jiggle and that hurts! With increased mileage I trust that I'll lose the weight again.

Anyways it was a successful run...slow and steady does it until I get fit again.

55:52 trail run

Oh and my body is adjusting to exercising regularly again. I went to bed at 8:30 last night and was asleep by 8:45. That's pretty geeky but I couldn't stay up later, I clearly needed the sleep.

One step back but two steps forward

2007-04-07T11:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my plan was to do a road ride. It never happened. I had searing, burning, hot pain in my left hip that progressively got worse throughout the day so I decided to skip the bike and have a rest day. I was totally beating myself up over skipiping the ride but then decided that I was stupid to feel so guilty when I was in that much pain. Plus my legs needed the rest. An extra rest day so early on in the schedule may have actually been a smart thing to do.

Woke up for my run today to overcast but warm weather. Shorts & t-shirt. Cathy and I headed to Brackendale and did part of the triathlon run route. 50:52 was our time. A really slow pace kept Cathy's heart rate at or below 145 the entire time. No idea what mine was. My legs felt like lead but my breathing was steady, even up the inclines so that's a positive sign for me. It was good to get out and clear my head. I'm pleased that I ran for 50 minutes.

So although I skipped a bike ride yesterday I'm stoked that I ran for 50 minutes today. One step back, two steps forward.