Be careful what you wish for!

A few weeks back I went into a competition-entering frenzy. It started with an offer on the front of Runner's World to win a brand new car. A quick bit of mental arithmetic and I figured my chances had to be pretty high. Not that many people read UK Runner's World and, of those that do, how many actually enter the competitions? It didn't end there... what else could I enter? I came across a few holiday competitions and then one in the SportSister newsletter for a place in the Dextro Energy Triathlon. I entered them all then thought nothing more of it. Until last Monday...

I was a bit taken aback when an email arrived in my inbox say that I'd won the triathlon competition. Amazing - I never win anything! But, hang on a minute, it's a place in a TRIATHLON. In 2 weeks. I'm struggling enough with my marathon and half-marathon training and haven't actually been in a pool since the last triathlon at the beginning of May. I'd planned to just run and do the odd gym session or bike ride through the summer, before launching into a swimming programme over the winter. Oops.

I briefly considered saying 'thanks, but no thanks' before it occurred to me that the prize included:

• Travel costs to London
• A night in a 5 star hotel, with dinner and breakfast
• An undoubtedly very fetching 'high end competition outfit'

Two of my best friends live in London and I can never afford to visit them so that was enough to persuade me that it would be worth the pain.

Let's just hope I'm not last this time...

FOMO

This month, I've been struck by a massive case of FOMO. I'm not usually a fan of acronyms, but that one strikes a chord. I first heard it in the car on the way home from work, listening to the Scott Mills show on Radio One. FOMO, or 'fear of missing out' is that horrible feeling you get when everyone else is doing something and, even if you don't really want to do whatever it is they're doing, you don't want to be the only one who's not doing it.

Earlier this year I tried to get a team together for the Corrieyairack Challenge, no mean feat when you're rubbish at mountain biking and everyone else you know is either (a)brilliant at it or (b)not interested. Then, in a flurry of excitement, a group of friends decided to put in a few teams and I thought I was going to get the chance to give it a go. The 'Corrie' is a 43 mile race done on either mountain bike or as a duathlon. No one wanted to do the duathlon except me, so it was mountain biking all the way.

We went out for a training ride in May and that's where the gap between me and the rest became apparent. It was all off the beaten track and I turned into a gibbering wreck. I came off and landed head-first in a pile of heather, resulting in a heather burned face and a mouthful of the herby stuff. I got so upset about my inability to keep up that I started to cry and said I hated it. No wonder no one wanted me in their team!

So, I volunteered myself as the team marshal - donning a high vis vest and lollipop to help direct the traffic on the route. It sounded fun on paper but the reality was that I was JEALOUS and couldn't get over the fact that I wasn't taking part. Even if I'd entered the race and been last, I would have loved just getting over the finish line. Even if I'd hated every minute of it. You just can't beat the satisfaction of getting there and accomplishing something, especially when it's really difficult. I felt so left out of the post-race chat that I went into a proper sulk. And then got even more mad because my hubby is doing ANOTHER race this weekend and I'm not invited. It's brought back horrible memories... I'm back at school and no one wants me in their netball team.

Stop! I'm not going to feel sorry for myself for a minute longer. I'm so proud of B for doing really well in the race and know that I just need to work really hard, be brave, and not let myself get left out again.

Peace

A moment of relaxation? No, me trying to figure out which direction we should be going in. Navigation never was my strong point.

Marathon sleeps to marathon plan

I'm back from holidays and finally over my jet lag after 3 days of feeling like the walking dead at work. I slept for nearly 12 hours last night and almost feel human again.

I managed to keep my training coasting along over the holiday. I fitted in a few runs, hikes and bike rides and even 2 gym sessions. If nothing else, it counterbalanced the massive amounts of food I was putting away and I actually came back a couple of pounds lighter. I tried my best to be healthy but had a few lapses and developed a new found love of peanut butter cups. Mmm.

The cupboards have been bare since we got back so I'm just about to head off to the supermarket to stock up on healthy provisions.  I'll need them because my 16-week marathon preparation plan kicks off in earnest on Monday...

Don't forget to pack your running shoes

We're off on holiday on Monday for two weeks and my running kit is at the top of my packing list.  I'm still feeling tired and struggling to get out after work so I hope that the holiday will give me a good chance to re-charge and energise.

I did manage to drag my sorry self along to both running club sessions this week.  The journey home from work was spent with a small demon on one shoulder whispering 'put your feet up, have a cup of tea, eat chocolate' and a virtuous little angel on the other saying 'you'll feel so much better if you make the effort'.  

In the end I compromised - I went along, did my best, then came home and had tea and chocolate!

 

Lost in transition

The past two weeks I've done virtually no exercise, except for taking part in another triathlon last Sunday. This one was a novice but I found it hard! I'm back to finishing in the bottom third, which could be for one of two reasons:

• inadequate training - given that I have no natural athletic ability at all, when my training isn't intense and specific I really struggle to make improvements 
• over-training - I worked really hard for the 10k and might have burned myself out a little bit - added to this I'm mentally drained from starting my new job, so maybe I just needed a rest.
  

Either way, I decided it would be a good idea to take a wee break and let my body and mind recover before I throw myself into marathon preparation.

I really enjoyed taking part in the triathlon. The first section was a 250m swim in the pool, which went much better than the one in March.  The difference here was that everyone was sent off at 15 second intervals, based on their predicted time, and we had to swim up and down the lanes in a snake-like formation. This meant that if you'd predicted your time wrong, you'd end up in a traffic jam.  I managed to overtake one person but found the whole 'tapping on the feet' thing very confusing so just slowed down and stayed behind the person in front for the last couple of lanes.  From here, we went straight out to the bikes.

I have a habit of taking ages to get ready. I don't wear loads of make up or blow dry my hair but I tend to faff and I like to be dry and comfy.  As a result, my first transition took over 3 minutes!  Heaps of people were overtaking me to head out onto the bike course, so I panicked and went for it without having a proper drink.

The bike section was good - just under 10k on undulating roads and the weather was lovely. I pushed as hard as I could but didn't make any significant progress. The run was the same but only 4k - I hadn't done any 'brick' sessions this time so my legs really did feel like jelly at the start, but I got round in 22 mins, even though by the time I finished my shins were starting to cramp.

My worst mistakes this time were not doing any swim or 'brick' training and hardly spending any time training on the bike, not practicing the swim transition, and not drinking enough.  Hmm, that's quite a few mistakes.  Why didn't I pay any attention to the idiots guides in Triathletes World. Ah well, I'll hopefully remember for next time.

The whole thing took me 55 minutes (87th overall out of 125; 16th female).  After a proper drink and some food I got my energy back, so I decided to go mountain biking in the afternoon.  My legs could only manage about an hour but I had to make the most of the nice weather.  After that, I was so shattered that I needed to take a few days off training.

This week I've concentrated on work stuff in the evenings but I wonder if my tiredness is as much mental, from the stress of changing jobs, than physical.  I know that exercise normally helps me to gather my thoughts and work through any worries.  Now I still feel tired, even though I've had a rest, so I'm off for a run to see if that sorts me out.

PW to PB in 4 weeks

Just a quickie today as it's my second day in my brand new job tomorrow (hence the lack of postings).  I ran a 10k this morning and managed to make a PB (50 min 46) in spite of my relatively rubbish performance in the half marathon last month.

One contributing factor could be the fact that I joined the local running club a couple of weeks ago and went out running with the big boys on the track on Thursday.  Okay so it's not really long enough to make a massive difference to my fitness but I think it made me realise that I can push myself harder than I have been.

To celebrate, I've now entered two more half marathons this summer and... wait for it... a marathon in October.  I'll keep you posted with the progress (after I've got my head around my new job).