Juggling training and holiday parties

It's that time of year where the holidays start to interfere with training.  So far, I think I'm balancing it pretty well! 


Yesterday, we had our holiday lunch at work.  Despite stuffing my face at lunch, I still managed to leave work early and head to the JCC for a swim.  I got in a quick 1000m, before having to shower and head home to meet Jeremy for his office holiday party.  I had a great swim.  In fact, it's the best I've felt in the water in quite a while. Not bad for a Friday afternoon! 


Today, the IM Championships were on TV, so I planned my trainer ride to coincide with the broadcast.  I rode for a bit over 30 minutes, but called it a day early since my right foot was swollen (it's the first time it has swelled up in weeks).  Although I was discouraged, I was inspired by the race on TV and I'm excited to see what this whole crazy ordeal has in store for me. 


Our neighbors are having a holiday party tonight, so we'll head over there in a couple hours!  The plan for tomorrow is a 1 hour run with Jeremy and the Rubster, so we'll keep the partying to a minimum. I'll post tomorrow about the run, and I'll post my plan for the coming week!


~Ash

And it begins

Yesterday I rode the trainer for 40 minutes after work.  It wasn't a very long session, but it felt good (except for the pain that comes from not sitting on a bike seat often enough for the past few months).  Not fun, but I know that will go away with time and training. Ruby's not sure how she feels about the trainer. She looks at me skeptically the whole time I'm riding.  She better get used to it, that thing it going to be my best friend this winter!


This morning, I met my lab-mate Danielle for an early morning run before work. Danielle is a rockstar! She has graciously offered to do as many of my training runs with me as I want.  Good news = I have a training partner who's willing to run in the pre-dawn hours with me!!  Intimidating news = she's faster than me!!  Deep down, I know that's a good thing, but man do I need to get back in shape fast. We did a 30 minute quick run around our neighborhood. It was a brisk 20 degrees out (and still dark) so we felt pretty hardcore as we dodged ice puddles : )


~Ash

This is where you come in

By this point, I think you all know that I've signed up for Ironman Coeur d'Alene 2011.  Just to make sure we're all on the same page, here's what that means to a non-triathlete: 


On June 26th, 2011 I will swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles, run 26.2 miles and hope to heck I finish in less than 17 hours.  If so, I will officially be an "Ironman".


My motivation for starting this blog is two-fold.  First, I am hoping you all will help hold me accountable for my training.  This is going to be a long uphill battle, and I know there will be times where my motivation drops.  My hope is that by logging my daily workouts on here, those of you who read it will call me out if I start to slack off. Second, I am hoping it will serve as a sort of diary for me. A place where I can record the whole Ironman process and hopefully, someday, look back fondly at all of the hard work I put in to succeed. 


Although my "official" training plan doesn't start until February, I am already in training to build my base fitness. I figure it doesn't hurt to start getting in the habit of logging in every day to update the blog!


So, here goes nothing! Thank you all for your love and support, and PLEASE kick me in the butt along the way if I slow down : )


~Ash