Journal of a Triathlete
Good morning! Happy Tuesday!
Let’s discuss the Cleveland Triathlon from this past weekend, July 22nd 2018.
Dad, Uncle Sam and friend Eric Hammon all came over to Cleveland from Defiance Ohio to participate in this race with me- which is awesome! I was NOT nervous for this race at all up until we walked out on the dock for the swim… then the nerves REALLY kicked in. Sometimes, the thought of an unknown, unfamiliar course can get to me. As soon as I jumped in the water, these nerves went away 🙂
Some action photos from the Clark Lake Triathlon last Sunday 🙂
This was well put-on race. Any race that Dave’s Running puts on is always organized and awesome!
Thank you to Dave’s Running!!
Hello!
Man oh man did I have a rude awakening this weekend! I remembered the fact that you just can’t win every single race and sometimes you are taken down a few notches.
We did the Clark Lake, MI triathlon on Sunday and it was a .5 mile swim, 13 mile bike and a 4.2 mile run. I went in with kind of a weird mindset because when the distances are slightly off like that, it messes up my mental game (which is no excuse). The swim took off as dad and I joined the other swimmers in the elite group. It felt fast and hard, very hard but at the same time, I felt like I was keeping up.
Good Morning and Happy Friday!
What motivates you to get out of bed and get your training done in the early morning? This is something I just did NOT get when I was 22-23 years old. Now, a few years later, it’s one of my absolute favorite things to do. Getting it done and out of the way in the early morning gives me this new high that I never used to get. Plus, it’s a great way to have the whole day to recover and prepare for your next training session of the day in the afternoon/evening.
Happy Monday!
Okay! So this weekend- I’m not sure if it was as hot everywhere in the US as it was in Cleveland, OH but it was almost unbearable when it came to my workouts. On Saturday, I woke up at 7:30 to do a 25 mile bike followed by a 3 mile tempo run. This did NOT go according to plan as I fell off my paces very quickly. Apparently, 7:30 wasn’t early enough- I should have started at 5! The heat just absolutely bogged down my body and I couldn’t keep up on my hydration. The 3 mile run was supposed to be around 7:30-8 minute pace and it ended up being 8:30, which I was pretty disappointed about.
HELLO! I”M BACK! Sorry for the long hiatus I have taken from my blog. Life has become overly busy and sometimes overwhelming, but at the same time, I have always enjoyed being busy.
What have I been up to? Just getting myself fully trained for the season and looking forward to each and every race. So far this year I have competed in three races: My first ever Dooby Du Duathlon in May, The Fox Island Sprint Triathlon in Fort Wayne, Indiana and the Ravenna, OH Dave’s Race Sprint Triathlon last weekend. I am happy and proud to say that I am three for three! I have won all three races and even though they have been small, It’s still the greatest feeling in the world.
Something I Never Thought I would Do!
You ever have those certain things in life that you say, “I’m never ever doing that!” … and then one day you find yourself doing it or preparing to do it? It’s happening to me right now. I never thought I would have the desire and the patience to be training for a full marathon, and here we are. I have started my official training and have been learning a lot of new things on how to train for long races.
I was originally going to do one back in November in Indianapolis, IN but that didn’t work out. Next, I was going to go down to Miami with friends and do the Miami marathon and now THAT isn’t happening due to cost and injuries. SO NOW, we are looking at doing our first marathon closer to home in either Michigan or Indiana in February. So now I have more time to train and not push myself too much or too hard into injuries. It’s been a long journey and I’ve gotten my runs up to 18 miles which is already something I never thought possible. I look forward to these days to come.
My first half ironman distance. What a crazy thing- to be able to say that I have completed it and I can tell you now, I’ll never forget it.
To be honest, going into this race I was more nervous than I have been in a long time. I believe that my nerves were coming from the fact that I felt like I didn’t know what I was doing and my confidence level was extremely low. I was very ready to show off the work I have put in, but scared as heck at the same time.
The race went just ok for me. My swim felt completely fine and felt like I could have even gone a little faster. The bike was the biggest surprise of all. I raced way faster than I ever trained on my long rides and the entire time I couldn’t believe it. However, I may have over ridden the bike portion just a little because when it came to the run, I already felt decently empty. The first 3-4 miles of the run I felt like myself. I felt like I was going to be able to do exactly what I wanted to do. Then I started getting into miles 5, 6 and 7 and the real pain began – pain that I couldn’t even imagine. For the rest of the 13.1 miles I ended up going through periods of tears, mental breakdowns and complete doubt. I honestly can’t even tell you what got me through the rest of the race. I guess it was the fact that, “I have come this far, how can I give in now??”
Half Ironman Race Week Nutrition-Part 1
Well, I can’t say that it’s the perfect diet and I can’t say that I’m in any way a nutritionist, but here are some things I have eaten during this race week.
Monday: Breakfast- two eggs and ground turkey and a side bowl of cereal with skim milk. Lunch: tuna packet and baked beans with some carrots and celery on the side. Snack- chocolate milk and a protein bar. Dinner- bbq ribs, broccoli and a wedge salad with ranch. THEN we went to the movies and I did have some sour patch kids 🙂
HAPPY FRIDAY!!
I decided to tune in and tell you guys exactly what is randomly on my mind at this EXACT moment.
Well, about 20 minutes ago the only thing I could think about was breakfast and coffee. Now that we have taken care of that, the biggest thing on my mind right now is getting out the door so I can begin my 1 hour swim workout and follow it up with a small bike workout on my new LIV Road Bike. (I’ll post pictures soon- check out my instagram @kaitlin_x_3-link at the bottom of my page) The next thing in line on my brain is the fact that I may lay out by the pool and get some rays before going into work tonight. It’s SUPER sunny and hot out today so I’ll probably be taking advantage of it.