Gear Guide - Fingertip Lap Counter

Training Plan	I Did
Swim: Warm-Up: 200 Swim 200 Kick 200 Pull Main Set: 16 X 50 Speedwork Cool Down: 200 Easy	Swim: Warm-Up: 200 Swim 200 Kick 200 Pull Main Set: 16 X 50 Speedwork Cool Down: 200 Easy
Workout Time:  40 minutes	Total Time:  120 minutes

One of the things I like about swimming is the oasis of calm in the pool.  No one bugs you.  No one wants to talk.  You can't hear or see your Crackberry.  It's like mediation time for me.  Unfortunately, I get lost in my thoughts and I forget to count my laps.


Speedo Aqualap to the rescue.  People seem to dislike this product on Amazon, but it's been awesome for me.  It's super easy to operate in the water and you don't need to stop swimming to count a lap.  It's very easy and intuitive to use.  You just tap it with your thumb while you're swimming.  Another nice thing is it has a little chime that you can hear underwater.  That chime lets you know that you did, in fact, count that lap.   Plus, I can easily read the screen underwater and see how lightenin' fast that last lap was.  (No more stopping and pulling off my goggles to see the timer clock.)  The downside is that the band isn't adjustable.  Either this is going to fit you or not - no adjusting.  I can't imagine that it would work for someone with large or petite hands.

Final verdict: You don't need this, but it's nice to have.  It lets you go on autopilot in the pool and then go home and analyze your lap data.

Training notes. Yesterday my shoulders finally protested the mile-a-day swimming.  When I hit the pool, my shoulders were tired.  I powered through my laps, but I'm looking forward to my rest day today.

Franken-bike Part 2 - The Donor Cycle

Once we had the frame and fork for my bike, thing got a bit more complex.  The frame is French and that means French-threaded.  (Who knew there was such a thing?)  You know the old saying "Lefty loosy, Rightie tighty."  Not true with the French.  They screw things on and off the opposite way.

That sent Steve searching for French threaded bike parts - wheels, headset, bars, brakes, derailleur, chain rings, chain, seat post, cranks.  Low and behold a few days later, a Motobecane bike came up for sale about an hour away from San Diego.  The bike had been repainted and we couldn't tell exactly what it what model it was.  Steve studied the photos and said "those dropouts were on put on the top end bikes.  Let's go take a look."  On the drive, I tried to not get my hopes up that we'd find all the perfect parts  in one stop.  I'd be happy to find one or two parts that we could harvest.

When we pulled up to the seller's house I knew the bike would be perfect.  In the driveway there was a vintage Jaguar XJ Convertible, 3 meticulously maintained Harley-Davidson motorcycles and 2 SUVs in perfect condition.  His garage was perfectly clean with one wall dedicated to those big red Craftsman tool cabinets.  Next to those cabinets was a hand-built triathlon bike.  This is a guy who knows good quality and knows how to take care of his stuff.

The donor-cycle was a gem with every component being top or near top of the line. The re-paint job was a signed Joe Bell paint job - again top of the line.  Steve wiped the drool from his chin and I paid the man.  Yep, miracle of miracles we found a perfect donor cycle on the first try.  It's almost a shame to harvest the parts, but the bike is too small for either of us to ride.  We'll resell the frame and some tiny person will love it. 

(PS...Sorry for the posting scarcity.  We've planned an entire wedding in the last 2 weeks.  We rock! But man, we're exhausted.)

Bad Fashion Choices Continue to Haunt Me

Triathlon training is going well enough that I'm starting to have a lot of confidence that I'll finish the race.  This weekend I did a 25 mile bike ride followed by a four mile run.  I'm feeling really strong on the bike. Good times.

Three little mishaps to report:

• Steve loaded my bike into my SUV for me and to do that he took off my front wheel.  When I load the bike, I just jam the whole thing into the truck so I've never had to remove the wheel or put the wheel on myself.  I couldn't figure out how to get the wheel on the bike and I was standing in the parking lot getting frustrated.  A nice man came along and did that for me.  Sometimes it's nice to be a girl. 
• The other thing is that I decided to ride in my running clothes which wasn't the greatest idea I've ever had. I put my new saddle on the bike this week.  (And I did it myself!)  If you're looking for a sore butt, then you should ride 25 miles on a brand new saddle without padded shorts.  My butt-bones are not really happy with me today.  Also, I wore a running shirt instead of a bike shirt which is longer in the back.  The bike shirts cover you when you lean forward on the bike.  My running shirt left an 1 inch gap which is now incredibly, ouchily sunburned.

My New Bathing Costume

In my ceaseless internet searching about triathlon preparation, I did a bit of shopping for triathlon suits.  I decided that if I could find one for about $35 bucks, I'd buy it.  Since the tri-suits are usually about $100-$150, there was little danger that I'd find one in my size for an 80% discount. Then I ran across this one for the low, low price of thirty bucks..

Let's not kid each other.  I've purchased a hot pink full-body triathlon girdle.  It doesn't hold in the jiggly bits like a girdle, but it looks like a girdle.

Steve, in a fit of wisdom, kindness or self-preservation, told me it looked good.  I'm pretty sure I look ridiculous, but at least my fans will be able to spot me on the course.

Found - The Most Elusive Rash Guard

Oh sweet bliss, I finally found a rashie that fits me.

I'm back in the pool these days which means I need to wear a lot of sun protection. For months, I've been looking for a decent rash guard shirt to wear in the pool. Rash guards are the shirts worn by surfers and other water nymph types to protect their skin from sand and chaffing. The bonus is most rashies offer 50 to 150 SPF sun protection.

The rub (or maybe the squeeze) is that rashies fit skin tight and they are sized incredibly small. Take this quote:

Rash guards are supposed to fit skin-tight so they run small - typically 1-2 sizes smaller than you normally wear. The model pictured is 5'6" tall, weighs 130lbs, wears a 36B, has a 28" waist and is wearing a size LARGE that you can see fits SKIN TIGHT - as it's supposed to! (Caps and exclamation points are their fault, not mine.)

If a 36B is pushing the maximum capacity of the size large, then what is a girl with bigger breasts supposed to do? The mens rash guard are too boxy to fit correctly and don't accommodate hips. Generally the boobaluscious are also hiptastic.

Today I bopped into Sports Authority to scope out the end of summer sales. and behold, Body Glove has looser fit rashies. (Not available on the Sports Authority website for some reason.) Of course they weren't on sale, but I wasn't about to let the elusive boob/hip fitting rashie slip through my fingers.

Wore it to the pool today and it was awesome. Plus, my décolletage isn't going to look like an old football when I'm swimming at the Senior Citizens Center.

Rock On Running Warehouse

While I have no vested interested in this company, let me give some props to Running Warehouse. I placed an order yesterday afternoon and it was here today - with free standard shipping no less.

After trying every frigging water belt on the planet I decided to give the Amphipod Handheld a try. Of all my running belts the Amphipod is absolutely the best. However, I don't love having to wear a dorky water belt when I'm only going out for an hour. The new handheld was here in time for my evening run. I'm not sure I'd like it for 20 miler, but it was good for low miles.

Considering my insane love of new gear, Running Warehouse could be a very expensive find.

Recovery Miles - And the Blisters Say Ouch

I ran two miles of wind sprints today as recovery from the Disneyland race. Sheesh, it was hot out there.

Also, the blisters on the ends of my toes were not cooperating. Great googly moogly - if I need to go up another size in running shoes I'll be so embarrassed. I'm wearing men's shoes as it is. I'm going to need to get clown shoes.

Test Run

I took my new running shoes out for a very light test run/walk yesterday. I've been putting off breaking in some new kicks for almost 2 months. New shoes aren't something you change right before a race. First, it was too close to the San Diego race, then too close to the Seattle race. I would have put it off until after the Chicago race, but my current sneakers are completely destoyed. There's no cushion left; it's sort of like running with bricks laced to my feet.

Friday, I stopped by the San Diego Running Institute and picked up a new pair of Mizunos. Since my next real run will be the Chicago half marathon, I had to make sure the new shoes aren't going to give me blisters or arch pain or make me take a hostage by mile 9.

As a test drive, I ran a bit, but mostly walked from Mission Beach to Pacific Beach and into La Jolla. The course took me right along the coastline and it was lovely and breezy, just perfect really.

I snapped this photo from the trail because I thought the shadows of the palm trees were kind of cool. I wonder why people live anywhere but here.

Superfeet, Not So Super

Last week, when the X-ray technician showed me the X-rays of my feet he said, "The right foot has a pretty large bone spur." My reply was, "Nifty, but it's the left foot that hurts."

Since this summer I've had problems with both of my feet. At the end of each race or workout, I'm limpin' and gimpin' on extremely tender tootsies. My plantar facsiae are irritable and those nasty facsaie have my heels aching whenever I run or jump. The X-rays where just to confirm that there aren't any broken or fractured bones. The bones are fine, even with the bone spurs.

When my foot problems first started, I had some Superfeet insoles custom made for my running shoes. Essentially they put your Superfeet insoles into an EasyBake oven to melt them, then the insoles are reformed around your foot. In theory, you should have insoles that precisely support your feet. People rave about Superfeet and I figured with custom fitting, they'd be perfect.

Except not. This weekend at training, I finally figured it out. It's the stupid insole that's the problem. I ripped it out of my shoe and ran with substantially less pain.

Just Blame The Dog

There are about 6 posts that I need to write - about mentoring for TNT's Peak Performance team (which is awesome), about the trip to Tucson, and about a bunch of other stuff.

For now, I'll tell you about my new workout mat. On Monday night the TNT training session is an hour of core work. Remember when old skool aerobic classes would finish with 5 minutes of torture abs? It's like that, only much more intense and it goes for a solid hour.

To soften the workout, I treated myself to a new extra cushy workout mat. My old mat is a thin yoga mat and it doesn't really soften much. Today was my first workout on my super-cushioned mat and at first all was good. Then, depending on the exercise, when I moved around the mat made a sort of flatulent sound. Lift, poot, lift, poot. It's tough enough to do the abdominal workout without laughing at faux-farts.

I'm not sure how I'm going to explain this problem when I return it to the store tomorrow.

Nike+ iPod nano = Suckage

I did my 13.1 miles to complete the Nike+ Women's Half Marathon. For the Nike+ Half Marathon, you need to run with the Ipod nano running kit. Here's the rub. My iPod nano locked up and had to be reset at about mile 10.5. The entire workout is gone from the nano's memory. I can verify that I did the workout, because I have it on my Garmin 205 - a product that does work reliably (unlike the POS iPod nano).

I bought the iPod nano specifically for the Nike+ Women's Half Marathon. Reading through the forums over at Nike+ it seems lots of people struggle getting these things to work. My nano is the new 8g and maybe that's part of the problem; maybe it wasn't fully tested. I'm not sure if it's the nano that sucks or the running kit that sucks. Maybe they just suck synergistically. All I know is there is some heavy duty suckage.

Honestly, when my nano crapped out, it really upset me. I was completely devastated and in tears. I was having a good run putting together some quality laps at Lake Miramar. Then the nano locked and it was all gone.

I tried to email Nike+ to get some help. When I clicked the email link at Nike+, this is the error message on the site.



Can you believe that - I'm not allowed to email unless the customer service agents are there. Gee, has Nike+ not learned that email can flow even if you're not there to read it. It will wait for you in your inbox?

Sad. Crappy, worthless and sad.

Finisher - Long Beach Half Marathon

Nice race. Not my best day, but it was a fun race. That's 2 of the California Dreamin' series complete with 1 more.

Thanks go to these people -

The lady at the expo who used The Stick to work out most of a cramp in my calf yesterday. Thanks to her today was a lot better than I hoped.

The person spraying KOOL ‘N FIT on tired and cramped muscles at mile 10. I was a doubter, but your product is awesome. Sorry I pulled up my running skirt and asked you to spray my hip too. Be grateful I didn't pull off my skirt and ask you to spray my butt.

The drummers at mile 12.5. You are awesome. Especially when you stopped drumming for a sec and pointed at me with your drumsticks. You totally, absolutely lifted me to the finish line.

The people on mile 9 who gave out free beer. I love you. No, I mean I Love You. You are my bestest friends.

Update to Bad Service

Update - I went back and got fitted for the bike. The guy who fit me for the bike was awesome! Fantastic! Super duper! All those explanation points were earned.

As annoyed as I was when I wrote this entry, I'm absolutely thrilled now. I feel as though I lucked out, because the person who fitted the bike to me was super patient. He spent nearly two hours making sure I was comfortable. I had no idea how detailed and precise bike fitting could be. He changed the pedals, the seat, the stem that holds the handle bars, the height of nearly every component. He measured me, used a plumb bob to make sure my knees aligned correctly. When he changed one thing, he'd have to go back and re-adjust every other component. It's all so interwoven. Quite a shock to a girl who bought her last bike at Target - fitting the bike meant making sure I could clear the bike frame when I stood.

After all the hullabaloo, my new bike is perfect for me. I rode 10 miles on Saturday and 5 on Sunday. I love the bike, even though I fell this weekend and scraped my knee. I wasn't even riding the bike when I fell; I was getting on the bike. Those darn clip-on pedals. My feet were trapped onto the pedal and I couldn't put my foot on the ground. Next thing I know, I'm lying on the ground with a bloody knee. And with several worried people trying to pick up me and my bike.

Bad Service

I don't have a bike. We were supposed to get fitted for bikes yesterday. A combination of a late meeting, having to go to Carlsbad to pick up race packets, and horrendous traffic meant that we were super late and super frustrated when we finally got to the bike shop.

When we got there, they could only fit one of us - actually that's complete BS. There were 6 people working and no other customers for an hour. They could have easily fit both of us, but the chose not to do so. Fine. We were late. My fault, I accept accountability. However, watching 4 "salesmen" stand at the counter chatting was a drag. Particularly because I'm trying to buy gear too. Even if they refused to fit me for the bike, it wouldn't have killed them to get my helmet, pedals, cleats and shoes together. Hey buddy, how about you go into the stockroom and find these bike shoes in my size.

I called today to see about getting a fitting. Turns out - no fitting Saturday or Sunday. Only fittings Monday, Wednesday or Friday during the business day. I have to take time off from work to go spend bucket loads of cash with these people.

That's is spellbindingly crappy customer service. I'll buy the bike there, if I can't find it in another shop. However, it's the last dollar I'll spend there. I'll hit another bike shop today to buy my shoes, gloves and helmet.

Sold

After researching and riding tons of bikes, I'm now the proud owner of a LeMond Buenos Aires Triple. Actually, I'm not an owner, but a layer-awayer. I put a deposit on the bike and will pick it up on Friday after it's fitted for me.

It's all carbon and has Shimano Ultegra stuff. I don't know what any of that stuff means, but it's a really good and comfortable bike. It even has Bontrager BzzzKill Vibration Dampers. Normally, I'm against a buzzkill, but in this instance I think it's a good thing.

Onto topics I understand. Isn't it pretty?

My Shins Are Freaky

On Saturday I bought new sneakers. I went to San Diego Running Institute, got measured and fitted - the whole nine yards. On Tuesday, I took my new kicks out for a spin. For the first time ever, I had intense pain in my shins. Not shin splint pain, muscle freak out pain. Just walking was fine, but as soon as I tried to get some speed going, Bam! Pain! We were doing intervals on Tuesday and I was a good 10-20 seconds slower on every interval than Steve and Peggy. (Truth be told, Peggy could have smoked us both if she'd wanted to do so.)

Tonight I took the new sneakers out for a second try. It's essential that the shoes I'm wearing this Saturday are perfect since it'll be a 18 mile session. Tonight I walked with Erica and we were flying along - no official intervals but with blasts of effort at a 10 minute mile pace. For walking that's pretty darn fast.

Guess what, no pain in the shins at all but a tiny bit of soreness in my arch. I can't decide if I should use the new shoes Saturday or not. If I don't break in the new shoes on Saturday, all I have left in one 20 mile session before the marathons. I don't want to relive the sneaker agony of my first marathon when I tried to change shoes too late in my training.

Marathon Weekend: Pre-Race Stuff

Backtracking a bit. Here are several pre-race things that will always be memorable to me.

Picking up the button with my uncles photo - This marathon thing started as a way to raise money for blood cancers. My uncle was such an athletic man, I know that it would have tickled him to be in a marathon. The photo is one where he's smiling broadly and obviously happy and healthy. Just seeing that button made me teary.

Getting my race number and timing chip - At that point it's the real deal. I've done a few 5ks and a bike race. Once you've got the number, the event goes from idea to actual.

Running 8 million errands the day before the race - I spent Saturday scrambling to find my favorite nutrition bars, getting my name on my jersey, etc. Note to self: next time rest before the race. Don't be such a perfectionist-dumbass.

Putting together my gear - Preparation is my skill/obsession. I laid out my outfit, race pack and after race bag. I took photos of my gear, mostly so I'd have a list for the next marathon. (Click on the photo and go to flickr to see the entire list.) The funny thing is that all that stuff fit very precisely into my carry belt. Years ago, I decided that I will only travel with 1 carry-on bag. My packing skills are unbeatable.

Entering the pre-race TNT pasta party - About 150 TNT volunteers lined the hallway all with noisemakers and costumes. As the participants entered, it was to a deafening cacophony of cheers and enthusiasm. It was so overwhelming, that it sort of scared me and I ducked off to the side. Finally, one of the mentors pushed me to go through the tunnel of cheering volunteers because that was the only way to the dinner.

Listening to the TNT party speakers - The cancer survivor and family stories were inspirational as always. The keynote speaker was John "the Penguin" Bingham; having him there was awesome. I've read Bingham's monthly column in Runners World since he started writing it. Even when I was completely unhealthy, I enjoyed his take on running. Over the years, he's made marathons accessible to tons of slow runners and walkers or penguins. He's known for saying, “The miracle isn’t that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.” That's true of most things, starting is the hardest part.

Next time, I'll post about the actual marathon.

Recovered-ish and Ready-ish

The cold is lifting and I'm feeling pretty much better - still tired but not miserable. Other than stretching, I've pretty much blown off the training plan this week. Rest seemed more relevant than any more training.

I'm definitely ready to make the attempt on Sunday. Worse case scenario, I'll stop at the "secret" half marathon finish line. It's a secret finish line, because the Rock N Roll Marathon only allows a half marathon finish for Team In Training members; everyone else is required to go the whole 26.2. I'm pretty sure I can make the full marathon distance, but it's nice to have a back up plan.

Yesterday, I picked up my official TNT jacket. Members get a jacket when they meet their fund raising commitment. It's sort of like being in a gang. It may be the most expensive coat I've ever owned - lots of y'all chipped in to "buy" it. If you come visit me in San Diego, you can wear it for awhile.

Hitting My Stride.

This morning I did 2.5 miles at my fastest time ever. I have a new Cardio Coach audio workout and it is awesome. Cardio Coach blows away the iTrain workouts - either that or I was so friggin' sick of the two iTrains that are designed for outdoor runs. Actually, the iTrains are good too, but I bored with them.

Tonight I'm meeting Debbie and Gretchen for 5 miles.

So for you math majors that's and extra 1.5 miles over the training plan.

Tomorrow is my rest day - you can be sure I'll be able to do that one.

When You're a Girl...

Tonight was the team bra fitting. Actually, it was the down and dirty story of the marathon. As in - where do I go to the bathroom during the race? (Bush, tree, bridge abutment - or wait for a port-o-let.) Where do you carry tampons? (In a plastic baggy in your race shorts. Plastic baggy is essential so you can dump water on yourself and not destroy the tamps.) The thing about women is that our bodies freak out when we hit puberty so we're used to asking each other about this stuff.

Oh, did I mention that this was at San Diego Running Institute. And who do I see but the sales guy I flashed when buying my running shoes. My thighs and my boobs - I think that might count as third base! Actually, you can tell these guys have seen all this a million times and they do not care.

Then we got to the fun. First we were all measured for bras. Then we got to select a few for try-on. There are two running bra styles: the uniboob (compression) or a home-of-their-own (encapsulation). I like the home-of-their-own style. Then we all jammed into the communal dressing room and started trying on bras and swapping them between us. Trust me, it wasn't as sexy as it sounds.

I ended up with an underwire sports bra in mesh - super breezy, not stick to the body mesh. It's the Moving Comfort Cara Bra. I won't be pulling off my top and running it just my bra, but I think it's probably a great fit. I also bought some Injinji running socks with special toes. And I bought some Body Glide to prevent chaffing in case the bra rubs.

Whoever said all I'd need is a pair of shoes is full of crap. Eventually, it's all about shopping.