I had to go to Southern California on Wednesday AM early and I just got back tonight so I missed some great workouts in the pool. If I don’t get to bed soon I’ll miss another one tomorrow (3 x 500 descending), too but I wanted to post about my chronically bizarre hotel room behavior.

It isn’t as good as you might think from that description but I find it sort of amusing. I have a TV in my bedroom at home. I almost never watch it. In fact, the only time I do is when we have some sort of family ‘must watch this show’ conflict and I choose to watch upstairs instead of in the family room.

When I get in a hotel room, however, I act like some backwater hillbilly that ain’t never seen one a them ee-lectronic pitcher screens before – gollleee! Just about the second I get back to my room after a day of work I get horizontal on the bed, pick up the remote control and start surfing. I don’t engage in my customary (if not compulsive) habit of reading in bed before I go to sleep – I just watch TV. I’m not afflicted with CNN disease the way I used to be but I still have a wicked case of Daisy-Duke-itis. So weird. Must be all of those fluffy pillows they put on the bed or something.

I had a most antagonistic morning at the Marriott Ontario today. First of all when I went to sleep I screwed up the 2 alarm clock and it went off a midnight sending me straight up to the ceiling where I quickly latched onto the fire sprinkler until I figure out what the hell was going on. Then at about 3:00AM the fan went off accompanied by a high pitched buzzing noise. I finally got up at about 5:00, pulled on my workout clothes and when I glanced at myself in the mirror discovered that my eyes looked like this:

Terrific.

I went down anyhow, ran a couple of miles on the treadmill at speed (9:40 for the first mile and 10:00 for the second) and then stopped because I have a 5K Saturday and I didn’t want to burn out my legs.

Back I trudged to my room where I pulled of my sweaty, nasty clothes then turned on the hot water in the tub to get ready for a shower. No hot water. hmmm… tried the sink – no hot water. hmmmm… called “0” and it rang and rang and rang and I knew what they would tell me – no hot water. Terrific. I really needed to get to the office. I waited about 1/2 an hour and Yay! hot water. Showered, washed my hair, went to blow it dry and – no brush. I forgot my brush. Terrific.

Used my fingers and did the best job I could, packed up, headed for the office armed with directions from my boss. I got very close to where the office was but didn’t see an exit sign with the name he gave. I kept going. The area got more and more sparse. I finally realized that there were lots of cars heading the other way (all backed up) and I was almost in Laguna Beach which is not the right place. Terrific.

Turned around and finally got to the office at about 9:30. Terrific.

On the plus side the plane left on time and I’m home and get to climb into my own bed where I will be not the least bit tempted to use the remote control.

=== Morning Update ===

1). When I looked in the mirror last night I discovered I had lost an earring. Not one I love that much but still… bummer
2). I didn’t go swimming.

It’s okay. Life goes on.

Several years ago I attended a Warren Miller ski film and was awe struck. Watching these hot-dogging guys (and I do believe they were almost all guys) go schussing effortlessly through knee keep powder inspired me to decide that for my 40th birthday I would take myself heli-skiing. All I had to do was effect an exponential increase in my skill on the slopes complete with a new found ability to carve in the deeps and take big air when land suddenly failed to show up under my skis.

I also needed to save up a pot load of money as your average heli-skiing adventure runs about 5 grand. What a great idea for the newly single mother of 3 small children. It was the kind of inspiration that makes you stand up, pump your fist in the air and yell “HELL YEAH!” but not a particularly actionable one (not that I didn’t try but it was truly insane).

Fortunatly I’ve found some less glitzy, more immediate sources of inspiration. When I trained for my first marathon I trained with Team in Training and if I got cranky and didn’t think I could go the distance I would think about leukemia patients fighting for their lives, enduring chemotherapy and spending day after day hugging the porcelain goddess and praying for relief and for a cure. Up against that scenario my lousy 8 mile run didn’t seem like such a big deal. Absent the daily reminder of those who suffer I look to those who show up and go the distance.

When I finally managed to get to the pool after I got back from Peru I found one of the lanes festooned with silver and purple helium balloons tied about every 5 feet along the lane lines. I generally refer to the lane that was decorated as Frieda’s lane because every single day at 5:30 AM Frieda shows up at the pool and takes ownership of half that lane. If she isn’t there and hasn’t mentioned to anyone that she will be out of town we all worry. The balloons were there to recognize and celebrate Frieda’s 90th birthday.

Frieda started swimming in her early 60s. A few years later she went to Israel for a visit, entered a swim competition and took 10 gold medals. She has them framed and on display in her house. Frieda doesn’t just show up – she gives it her all.

She is steadfast and dedicated and as I already said, she shows up and swims at the very least every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday – without fail. When we swim short course she gets 1/2 a lane to herself and I used to try to bust a move out on to the deck so I could have the other half and swim at my own pace. Fortunately for me Frieda has invited a friend who has usurped my lane of sloth. When I swim there it tends to bring out the lazy in me because I don’t have to work to keep the pace. But I digress.

When I feel the intensified gravitational pull of my bed and think about how I am more tortoise than dolphin and I just don’t want to swim I think about Freida and about how dedicated she is and about how hard she works. I think about her very late start in the sport and her early accomplishments. It makes it pretty hard to justify “I don’t feel like it”.

Sometimes I wonder why I bother swimming and running and cycling and entering organized events when I am such a no talent slow poke. I can only compete against myself because I just don’t have the athletic prowess needed to be a competitive Age Grouper. It just isn’t going to happen and so I often wonder why make the effort at all?

I do it so I’m not just another middle-aged Moms jean wearing, barrel shaped, matron, unable to climb a flight of stairs without getting winded. I do it so that today, tomorrow and when I’m 90 I can still be experiencing my vitality, not my decrepitude. I do it because not doing it feels like giving in. I do it to set achievable goals and then bask in self-satisfaction when I succeed. I do it to learn to appreciate my effort whether or not I meet my goals and to learn to stop trashing myself when I don’t. I do it to get high on myself and so I can eat pizza once in a while without freaking out about it. I do it so I can work on getting better, not older.

How about you?

Everyone else is writing about their 5K Turkey trots so I had to weigh in with my Thanksgiving Day workout. I went swimming. The swim workouts on Holidays are always packed. We had 5 in our lane and there were 7 in the lane next to us. I thought about suggesting one person move over but I decided they could count and figure that out for themselves.

We started with 6×25 3 times. The first 6 on the 35, second 6 on the 30 and third 6 on the 25. Then we did what was truly a group effort set. We had to swim/kick/pull 400 yds (our choice) followed by a 200. This was repeated 3 times but we had to descend the 200 every time and that had to be our total lane time, from when the first person left until the last person came in.

This is unique in that usually when you do a descending set it is all about you and you alone. If someone in the lane is not into descending then that is his or her prerogative as long as they don’t get in the way. To make all swimmers bust a move is different. Different in a good way.

I can’t really do it. I’m pretty sure I have low lung capacity so as the workout goes on I become increasingly unable to speed up. I tried like hell, though, and I don’t think I was the limiting factor. There was a woman behind me and I wasn’t exactly in her way. We collectively descended 6 seconds from the first 200 to the 2nd but came in even on the third.

I was going to go for a run after swimming but was beset with Thanksgiving sloth. Then we went to see Happy Feet (cute with liberal political overtones) and then had dinner with the kid’s Dad’s parents and 2 of his sisters. It was a great day.

1). Pookie is home ? yay! So is Small Son?s lovely girlfriend. We miss Humbly Ann and her betrothed a lot but we are happy to be together.

2). I lost my glasses the other day and have to buy a new pair and I wear progressive lenses that are very expensive ? boo!

3). I love the Internets which is allowing me to purchase new glasses (the exact ones I lost) for $270 instead of the $478 they would cost elsewhere.

4). My arms are sore from swimming but it hurts so good

5). I joined the local Race Club today and I?m looking forward to being a part of a group of people who race even if I will be one of the slow ones.

6). I decided to sign up for Wildflower (Olympic Distance). I hope I get a slot.

Last but best is this. I love Thanksgiving. It is a holiday unburdened by any agenda other than getting together with family and friends and eating a lot of really great food and counting our blessings. I?m feeling particularly blessed this year as I do just about every year. I have 3 fantabulous children, we are all healthy, we are all well supported financially either by our own labors (Go Humbly Ann!) or by mine, and we love each other. Our family is about to grow by 1 (Go Humbly Ann!) and we all love my soon to be son in law and those of us who have met the rest of his family love them, too. I see large, fun, extended family gatherings in our future.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in blogland ? may your own accounting of blessings make you smile. And that goes for you Canadians, as well.

1). Pookie is home – yay! So is Small Son’s lovely girlfriend. We miss Humbly Ann and her betrothed a lot but we are happy to be together.

2). I lost my glasses the other day and have to buy a new pair and I wear progressive lenses that are very expensive – boo!

3). I love the Internets which is allowing me to purchase new glasses (the exact ones I lost) for $270 instead of the $478 they would cost elsewhere.

4). My arms are sore from swimming but it hurts so good

5). I joined the local Race Club today and I’m looking forward to being a part of a group of people who race even if I will be one of the slow ones.

6). I decided to sign up for Wildflower (Olympic Distance). I hope I get a slot.

Last but best is this. I love Thanksgiving. It is a holiday unburdened by any agenda other than getting together with family and friends and eating a lot of really great food and counting our blessings. I’m feeling particularly blessed this year as I do just about every year. I have 3 fantabulous children, we are all healthy, we are all well supported financially either by our own labors (Go Humbly Ann!) or by mine, and we love each other. Our family is about to grow by 1 (Go Humbly Ann!) and we all love my soon to be son in law and those of us who have met the rest of his family love them, too. I see large, fun, extended family gatherings in our future.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in blogland – may your own accounting of blessings make you smile. And that goes for you Canadians, as well.

I haven’t written in some time but it’s because I am very busy. I had to go to S. California 2 times last week. I am working on 2 things – one is a post about inspiration and I also need to finish up the Peru trip.

Stay tuned – it’s coming.

I am so jonesing for a GPS/HRM combo so I don’t look like a robot when I go out running. The difference in price between the 2 models available is about $100. Is it worth it?

I have teeny writsts so the shape of the 301 is fine with me. What I need to know is if you think the signal is better and is the 305 waterproof enough that you can wear it while swimming in open water.

If you have any ideas please let me know. I’ve read a few reviews but it still isn’t clear to me.

update: Apparently the reason this video got made is because they guy doing the ILRT was lambasted on some cycling boards for claiming he could do it. After you watch the video you’ll see why.
=========== end update==========

I don’t know about you but winter is not my favorite time of year. Some of you claim that you like running in the snow. When I read that my head screams “OH SURE – SURE YOU DO!” And you might. I don’t like running when it is 40 out so I have a little trouble relating.

Swimming in the winter is nice. Even when my car is wearing a crust of frost and I know I’ll be high stepping across a very cold deck to grab a board and a pull buoy before I can jump in the heated water I don’t mind. I love steam coming off the pool surface and the silky feel of the water.

Cycling is another matter, though. Just about wherever you are, winter means riding in the trainer and I hate the trainer. It always feels like my groin is in a vice grip and it’s really hard to watch a movie or listen to a book and really focus on form and cadence. No scenery, no real hills, no entertainment at all – just hard work and for someone as lazy as me that means really, really hard work.

This guy seems to have cracked this problem by coming up with something new and different. He isn’t using a trainer – he is on rollers. Check it out and tell me how soon you intend to try this little training trick (requires Windows Media Player. Click on image to show video).

Alrighty then – get ready, get set – GO!

So here we are on a Friday evening and I’m writing a sports product review. I’m telling you people I really know how to LIVE LARGE!

Anyhow, I was sent a complimentary jar of Accelerade and 2 packs of Accelgel – right about when I stopped running regularly. I did use the Accelerade for some bike rides and as a recovery drink from a couple of runs and I liked it. It tastes good, it didn’t make me sick and I think it really helped. In fact, it’s too bad I forgot about it these last 2 weeks because I am very sore from swimming so much and I believe that if I had consumed Accelerade regularly on returning from the pool I would feel better.

I did use the Accelgel during the Nike Half Marathon and I love it. It tastes good, goes down easy (no gagging and that is HUGE for me), gave me energy and did not make me sick.

I give the Accel products 2 thumbs up. If they don’t carry them at your local running/bike/swim/tri store you can get them here or here.

Boy that was fast.

1). My arms are killing me! This rapid increase in swimming time has me oh so sore but it’s a good thing I’m doing it because:

2). Sharkfest! Our intrepid friend and 90+ something triathlon finisher Fe-Lady somehow got me to sign up for Sharkfest! What that means is that next June 10 I will ride a ferry out to Alcatraz Island, pull on a wet suit, jump into the 58 degree, murky waters of the San Francisco Bay and swim back to Bakers Beach. Have I ever told you the one about how I am terrified of fish? This should be interesting. I’d say I did it so I could meet Fe-Lady but I live here so I could have done that, anyhow. If I drown or get eaten by a shark you know who to blame 🙂

3). 5K – I need to run a 5K to get a current 5K time. The only one I ever I ran was in 1997 and it took me 38:23. I could beat that time tomorrow by quite a bit. Imagine what I can do with a little speed work training. I love getting better instead of older.

4). Lance! I’d like to thank Lance Armstrong for saying that running the NY Marathon was the hardest thing he had ever done as an athlete. When asked if he would do it again he quipped “Now’s not the time to ask that question. The answer now is no, I’ll never be back. But I reserve the right to change my mind,” he said. “I don’t know how these guys do it.”

Anyone taking bets on how long it will take him to get over the pain of NY and decide to actually train properly and run another one? His original goal was 2:30. I give him 2 months, max. Or maybe he’ll decide to do an IM. That is also a possibility and one I rather like.

5). A thank you to the BlogFather of the RBF and now CRN – Mark. Mark did a post on his training in which he said he would do his long runs at 70% of his max heart rate and short runs at 80%. I wrote him and said that was daft – too hard! He wrote back and explained that it was actually taking it easy. I looked at my own history with the HRM and realized that according to the (inaccurate) age – 220 rule my max is about 169. I usually run at about 150. That would be a little over 90% effort. No wonder I get burned out early and can’t negative split. I’m going to try actually slowing down to speed up. I’ll keep you posted on how that goes.

6). Wedding Plans – Humbly Ann and I are working on floor plans for the wedding. She submitted this one with a little note:

“The fourth one is you and me at the end of the party on the ground because we are tired and drunk. It’s a little blurry – but we will be too.”

If you need any child rearing advice you know who to call.