Week 7 Bike - Lomas Santa Fe to Carlsbad

This morning was the 2nd time I've ridden the 20 miles on PCH from Lomas Santa Fe to Cannon Road in Carlsbad. This time was much improved over my Week 3 ride. The weather was COLD (38 degrees when I left home) but so clear I swear I could almost see Hawaii. Riding along the coast was beautiful! I went out with the beginning group again and felt really comfortable on the bike. I wasn't afraid of the traffic and barely used my brakes on the downhills. It took about 2 hours to do the entire ride, including a short intermission at the halfway point for some tips from the coach. I could have ridden a bit faster, but I am not quite comfortable passing other riders while traffic is around. I think this was my best performance on the bike yet. With 3 months left to prep, I'm starting to feel like I might actually finish the race! Thank you for all of your support!

Action Photos

Finally some photographic proof of my triathleticism! There are more to come, but these are the ones that have been published so far...

This one is of me getting some help from my coach with my CO2 during the tire changing clinic.

The next photos are all from our first brick workout which included running and biking intervals. (2 steps together work like building bricks?) Anyway, that's what they're called. I am the runner in the Navy sweatshirt.

Next is a photo of the team walking our bikes through the transition area from the run to the bike workout. I'm still in the Navy sweatshirt.

This is the team starting up the hill to the bike route. I'm in the back of this photo in the gray sweatshirt. The last photo is of the team getting some words of wisdom from the coach on the side of PCH. I'm there, but you can't see me.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! Don't worry, the holidays haven't kept me from my workouts, just from my computer. In the past two weeks I have made it to all of my coached swim, bike & run sessions ( 2 each) and mailed in about $500 more dollars from my holiday gift fundraiser. I have another bike ride tomorrow (25 miles) on PCH, so if you'll be in the area honk at the slow biker at the back of the pack - that will be me!

Week 5 Bike - Terror in the Rain!

I was told the Week 5 ride on Scripps Poway Parkway featured "rolling hills". In my mind I imagined rolling hills to be small rounded hills through a green meadow - what a pleasant ride. Boy was I wrong. The start of the ride wasn't bad - no meadows, but Scripps Ranch is a nice enough neighborhood to ride. There were a few manageable hills and I was feeling good. Then we started riding up. And up. Someone said a "nice steady climb". Well, that climb continued until we hit the 67 freeway (yes, the one that goes to Ramona). There we turned around and came back. The uphill ride was exhausting, but it was nothing compared to the ride back down. If you've been reading you are familiar with my fear of riding down hills. Well, I passed at least 3 of these steep grade signs on the way back down. Oh, did I mention it was now raining? In between repeating "I will not die here", "I will not die here", and "I will not cry", I tried to calm myself down by creating a new song I called "Riding In The Rain", which sounds shockingly similar to "Singing In The Rain". I was cold, wet, scared, and really proud of myself for making it down the hill! After the big downhill, the rest was cake. My legs were pretty tired riding up the "rolling hills" on the way back, but I didn't care. I was happy to have finished. One of the TNT mentors took photos of us riding up the hill. Once it's published, I'll post it here. That is definitely a photo I want to see! Week 6 starts with swim on Monday...

Week 5 Run

Sometimes I think I should be training for a marathon rather than the triathlon. Today is one of those times. After 3 warm-up laps we ran 4 intervals of 3 laps (1200 meters) with 1 min 45 sec rest in between. The goal was to run at our pace which for me was 8:18 per 3 lap interval (about an 11 minute mile). I ran consistently at 7:30, almost a minute faster than my pace time. And I felt good doing it. If I could keep a 10 minute mile pace for the race, the run would take an hour and that's a pretty good goal. Thanks for all of your support!

Week 5 Swim

I was almost awesome tonight! It was really hard to convince myself to swim tonight. It's cold outside and you know the thing I hate the most is being cold. But I got to the pool and got in the pool. And I swam lap after lap, drill after drill - and I wasn't even the slowest swimmer on some of the drills. I was awesome! And then Coach made us take the swim fins off. I was no longer awesome. In fact I'm not even sure I was moving. I'm pretty sure I saw the same 4' 6" tile marker for 3 breaths. I did swim both laps without the fins without stopping - so I am improving. Just not as much as I thought. Maybe next week...

Week 4 Bike - Tire Changing & 56 Bike Path

The cool thing about Team In Training is that they not only train you for the race you're going to run, but also prepare you to handle any obstacles that might get in your way - like a flat tire on your bike. Yesterday was the tire changing clinic. I aced the front tire removal and and attachment portion - I need to do that to get the bike in and out of my car, so I have lots of practice. I also did pretty well at the rear tire removal and attachment. I had some issues with the tire changing though - mostly because I didn't have the right equipment. Now I know what I need to get, so I'll be visiting a bike shop soon for a speed lever and CO2 pump. The basic drill is tire comes off, tube comes out, new tube goes in, tire goes back on. Even though I'm now trained in the art of tire changing, I'm really hoping for no flats during the race. With my slow ass swim time, I can't afford any extra time on the bike if I want to make the cut and cross the finish line.

I didn't ride with the team yesterday after the tire changing clinic, so I rode this morning on the 56 bike path. I had a few "major"successes along the way. First, I rode down Carmel Country Road, which is pretty much straight down. My hands hurt so bad from pumping the brakes the entire ride down, but I'm still terrified of hills (well, it's the speed that terrifies me, not the hills - specifically, the thought of being thrown from the bike at 50 mph and being hurled through the air onto the windshield of an oncoming car) So, I made it down the hill. (Success #1) Then I found the bike path entrance and rode along there through the houses. Instead of turning up onto the main bike path I found an area of the path that deadends that was perfect for practicing my water bottle handling skills. I have never had the nerve to reach down, grab my water bottle, take a drink and put it back while I'm riding. I always wait until I stop. So, today was the big day. The first time, I reached down and grabbed the water bottle but then had to quickly grab the handlebars before I crashed into a big bush. I was riding the bike with both hands and holding the bottle at the same time. Once I regained control I took a drink and then after a few attempts got the bottle back in the holder. Attempt #2 was much smoother - I grabbed the bottle, took a drink and replaced the bottle without losing control of the bike or too much speed - success! (#2) So feeling confident I rode back onto the main bike path. I rode for about another 45 minutes and then turned around to head home. On the ride home, I decided to try my water bottle trick again, I grabbed the bottle, took a drink and put the bottle back, except that I missed the water bottle holder and my bottle was now on the side of the rode. I had to get off the bike and retrieve the water bottle before I could continue home. Thank God for the 56 bike path - I am a menace on the road! So, on the ride back I decided there was no way I could ride back up the hill on Carmel Country Road. I decided on El Camino Real instead. I took the bike path to El Camino Real and then rode up that hill. Success #3! Overall I felt pretty good on the bike today. Week 5 starts with swimming tomorrow night - my favorite!

Week 4 Run - 5 1/2 miles with sand intervals

Tonight's run was something different. We met at Belmont Park and ran south to the jetty for a warm-up jog. From there we ran to the PB Pier and then back to Belmont Park. The kicker was that we alternated between running on the boardwalk and running in the sand. This is because the last 1/2 mile of the Lavaman is on sand. Coach said to run hard on the sand and easy on the boardwalk. I jogged really slow or walked really fast on the boardwalk - the sand was a killer! Running on sand is pretty difficult, but add the fact that it was dark and you have a pretty good workout. I hit a couple of holes that I couldn't see and used a few colorful words, but I made it. On the way back from the pier I figured I had already run 1/2 mile on the sand, so I stuck with running the boardwalk. Other than talking myself out of a quick stop at Lahaina for a beer I felt pretty good. I even waved to the diners at World Famous on my way by. Time for a shower - thanks for your support!

Week 4 Swim - Finally a lap!

As you can see, the lovely green Team In Training swim cap really brings out my eyes.

Here is proof that I was in a pool on a 58 degree night. And the photo commemorates the night I rocked the pool! Finally! Coach had us swimming for more than an hour and I was and still am exhausted! But, I swam an entire lap without stopping on my back, another on my side, another swimming half a stroke and most importantly yet another lap doing the regular freestyle. I felt like tonight all of the drills came together and I really swam. And now that I can swim on my side, where I can breathe the entire time, I have a way to "rest" when the swimming gets tiring. What is that small speck of light I see? Oh, it must be the end of the tunnel!

Week 3 Bike - Solana Beach to Carlsbad

This morning I rode my bike 20 miles! I joined the Team In Training for a Saturday bike workout. It was my first since week 1 I was at A Day Out with Thomas the Train and week 2 I was holding the photo fundraiser. We broke into 3 groups, advanced, intermediate and beginners - and yes, I went out with the beginners. We met at Lomas Santa Fe in Solana Beach and rode north on the 101 Pacific Coast Highway through Solana Beach, Encinitas, Cardiff, and Leucadia to Cannon Road in Carlsbad. 10 miles out and 10 miles back at an average speed of 11.1 mph. I was pretty nervous at first as PCH is a busy road and I haven't ridden with traffic before. I was glued to the bike lane until it went away and we had to share the road with the cars. I was also afraid of going too fast down any hills and of taking my hands off the handlebars for any reason. This includes wiping hair out of my face and scratching my nose. For the entire 10 mile ride to Carlsbad I kept my hands on the handlebars. The other difficulty was getting my feet into the pedal cages. We had to stop at every stop sign and red light, which meant getting my feet out of the cages to stop and back in to go. A few times felt like when I was learning to drive a stick shift - I would stop at a stop sign on a hill and roll back so far trying to start again that I would have to re-stop at the stop sign. Well, today I stopped at a stop light just as it turned green, and it took me so long to get my foot in the darn cage that the light was yellow when I finally crossed the intersection. BUT, the ride back was completely different. After an hour on the bike, riding with traffic, being passed by much better cyclists, and not falling while racing down hill, I was much more comfortable. On the ride back I actually took my hands off the handlebars and got the hair out of my face. I was much faster on the pedal cages and even went down an entire hill without hitting the brakes. I was pretty proud of myself. And I enjoyed the ride. Riding along the ocean filled with surfers was so cool. I even saw a few dolphins. Being outside last weekend for the photo fundraiser and riding PCH this weekend has really given me a new appreciation for how lucky I am to live in San Diego - what a beautiful place! Also, on the way up to Cannon Road I rode around a curve with dried brush on the right and yellow and black reflectors along the road. It suddenly occurred to me where I was and Chris and I had a moment. When I finished the ride I felt so good that I really could have run. (However, I went straight home to shower instead). My coach says I'm becoming a triathlete. I think I might make a good biathlete and leave the swimming to someone else. Thanks for your support!

Week 3 Swim

Ugh! I just can't get into a rhythm with my breathing. Tonight's swim seemed a bit warmer than the previous 2 weeks, but maybe I'm getting used to it. We did some laps holding onto the kickboards to perfect our kicks (mine is still bent) as well as to work on swimming on our sides to better our rotation. The side swimming was fine - I could breathe the whole time. And I could go the length of the pool. So the problem is definitely my breathing. It's not really a surprise, but the side swimming exercise just proved it. So, if anyone has any ideas on how to get my breathing down, I would really appreciate your help! The coach said my body position is improving (i.e. I'm not sinking as much) so I am seeing slow but constant improvement. I'll keep trying!

I also did a base building run this morning. I ran 2.5 miles at a 10:50 mile pace. So, that pace puts me at just over an hour for the run portion of the race. An hour run plus the swim and I'm looking at finishing the race in 3 days. Just kidding! There's beer at the finish line - I'll be there to claim mine while it's still cold. Thanks for all of your support!

Photo Fundraising Success!

Thank you to everyone who participated in yesterday's Family Photo Fundraiser. I raised $1100 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, bringing my total to $2075. The morning started out pretty foggy and overcast, but the photographers assured me that the weather was good for pictures as there wouldn't be anyone squinting in the photos. Eleven families had photos taken in the morning session - most with kids under 5 who were perfectly dressed. The morning was very high energy and lots of fun! Eleven more families came for the afternoon session. The fog had lifted by then and the clouds were swirled across the sky. It was a perfect afternoon for photos. If you need a photographer, please consider one of the fabulous photographers who volunteered their time and talent to take the family photos. They chased kids over rocks and up lifeguard towers to get that perfect shot! They are Dawn McLeod, Dana L.Wright of dlWright Photography, Felix Chu of Chu Photography, Courtney Barrs of CeeBee Photography and Timothy Huskey of Pro Images Photography. And a very big "thank you" to Victoria Mitchell who sent the event flyer to everyone she knew and single-handedly sold out the fundraiser! I'm cancelling my linked in and facebook accounts to hang with Victoria - she knows way more people!

On Friday I did my base building run and swim workouts. I came so close to swimming an entire lap. I got so excited when I saw the black line on the bottom of the pool indicating the end of the lane that I put my feet down - about 2 strokes before reaching the end of the pool! My goal for tomorrow night's swim is to swim an entire lap without stopping at least once. Thanks for all of your support!

18 miles per hour

I rode 18 miles per hour on my bike today. It felt really fast and a bit terrifying - but really fun too. Speed is my new friend. I just thought you should know.

Week 2 - Swim

I just finished my week 2 swim session. Today was much warmer than last week. I was still cold and shivering, but much warmer! So today we started out of the water and learned the most effective stroke technique. Then we got in the water to practice. We also worked on some breathing exercises. As I was swimming, my coach called me out for bending my knees too much when I kick - that explains why I'm sinking... So even with the new techniques and practicing with 4 laps last Friday, I still couldn't quite make it across the pool. I got further than last time though, so I'm on my way! This week I loosened my goggles so I don't have the obnoxious rings around my eyes and found the hot showers in the locker room so my teeth didn't chatter the entire ride home. I really am making progress :)

Also today, I rode my bike around the neighborhood with the kids. They were so excited to see mom's new bike and kept encouraging me and telling me I was doing a great job. Do I have great kids or what? I was terrified to crash into a child, so I didn't let go of the handlebars or brakes. Not quite good racing technique, but it worked while I'm getting to know the Bruiser.

Saturday is my big fundraising event. If you need family photos before Christmas, send me an email so I can get you scheduled for the family photo fundraiser. I still have a few spots available. Thanks for all of your support!

Tuesday Run

Tonight was my first run training. It started a bit sketchy as there were no lights at the track. But the coaches brought out 2 heavy duty lights to shine on opposite ends of the track and some flashlights, so we were good to go. There were 50+ runners there, so I met a few more teammates. We started with some ab exercises - crunches, plank, etc. Then we did a 10 minute jog - I tried not to exert too much energy and only ran 2 1/4 laps for the warm-up. Stretching came next and then it was time to run. Tonight we were supposed to run one mile as well as we could. From this mile time and a magic database program, our 10K time will be projected and our training will be based on that. My goal was to run the mile in less than 10 minutes. My first lap was 2:15, so I was looking good. My 2nd and 3rd laps were progressively slower, but I knew that if I really pushed I could still beat the 10 minute mark. So just like the Chargers, I gave it all I had for the 4th and finished the mile with a 9:36. Yippee! I definitely was not the slowest runner in the group, and there were some teammates who were able to sprint the entire mile and finish around 6 minutes (yikes!) so I was definitely not the fastest either. But I feel good about my performance (way better than my swimming!).

On the fundraising side, a date has been set for the Family Photo Session Fundraiser. It will be Saturday, November 22 at Torrey Pines State Beach. The fundraiser includes a 15 minute family photo session and a disc of all your photos so you can use them however you want - print Christmas cards, print enlargements, create holiday gifts, etc. The cost for the photo session and disc is $50 per family. All of the money goes directly to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and is tax deductible. If you're interested, please email me and I'll get you a flyer with more information. Thanks for all of your support!

Monday Swim

I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders - I actually made it through my first swim session. And I have to say that I am pretty proud of myself. I figured out how to put on a swim cap - I've never done that before - and goggles. The beginning swimmers like me spent some time watching the more experienced swimmers from the deck as the coach pointed out the correct technique for kicking, breathing, arm motion and body positioning. Then it was our turn in the pool. The air temperature was 53 degrees and the pool didn't feel much warmer. OK, I'm exaggerating a bit, but the pool was cold! I was trying to imagine myself swimming in Hawaii, but pretty much stayed stuck in San Diego winter. We practiced kicking across the pool with kickboards - head under the water - as well as kicking while holding the wall. We swam a few times across the pool as well. I could swim about a half length of the pool before I had to put my feet down and rest (only for a second though!). For the triathlon, I'll need to swim 1 mile which is 72 lengths. So I have a LONG way to go. But I'm on my way! And apparently my goggles were on a bit tight, as I still have indentation marks around my eyes a good hour after I took them off. I was terrified that they would leak. I really wanted to post a picture, but didn't want to stay in the water any longer than absolutely necessary to get one taken. I'll work on that next week. Tomorrow is my first running session and I'm actually looking forward to that!

On the fundraising side, things are going well. I've received $875 in donations so far. Thank you so much to the Garbaczewski Family, Hillary, Stephanie, and the Toblers! I'm planning a family photo fundraiser for later this month as well as the gifts that will be sold at the holiday party. Also, Silpada Designs Jewelry has generously offered to donate a percentage of jewelry sold at the holiday party as well. Thank you all for your support!

Homemade Holiday Gifts for Team in Training

I'm creating delicious homemade gifts that are perfect for a teacher, coach, babysitter, Secret Santa, hair dresser, etc - and any money raised will go towards my Team in Training fundraising goal benefiting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. You can view and order the gifts here. Thanks for your support!

The Bruiser

Today I met The Bruiser. It's big and purple and kind of intimidating. Of course, I'm talking about my new bike. Well, it's not really mine, nor is it new. I am renting a bike from my Team in Training coach. I went to his house to be fitted for a bike and was met by hundreds and hundreds of bikes. The first bike I tried was bright yellow with blue and yellow handlebars. I was hoping the Chargers bike would fit, but it was too large - the seat was too high and my legs were reaching too far for the pedals. The next bike was also yellow and the height was fine, but this time the bike was too long. Then I tried the Bruiser. It's a Cannondale and like I said, it's purple. But a cool purple, not Barney's flesh tone (or is it fur?) After the seat height and position were adjusted, it fit me perfectly. So, now I have a custom fitted bike, just like a real triathlete. Now I just need to buy a helmet and I'll be ready to go.

The other cool thing about the bike fitting was that there were other team members there also getting fitted. So I got to meet 4 people who will be training with me for the Lavaman Triathlon(3 women - 2 who are 5' 2" like me - and one guy.) They have all done triathlons before, but assured me I wouldn't be the only virgin on the team. Then they started talking about the sharks in the water around Hawaii - I'm hoping it was just a bit of hazing...

On the fundraising side, I received my first donation this week (thank you Fisher Family!) I'm planning a few holiday-related fundraisers, so I'll keep you posted when I have everything finalized.

The official Lavaman Triathlon Team in Training kick-off is next Saturday, Nov 8. Then the real work begins! Thanks for your support!

You're Doing What?

Here's something new... I am training for a triathlon! The Lavaman Triathlon is a one mile ocean swim, 25 mile bike ride and a 6 mile run. Triathlons are considered an endurance sport. So those of you who know me are of course thinking, "Kristin's gone mad!" Some of you know that I can't really swim. Some of you know I am freaked out by the ocean and it's creatures. Some of you know that I rode a bike across the Golden Gate Bridge this summer and that was the first time I've ridden a bike since I was in jr. high. And most of you know I am allergic to exercise. So, what gives?

I read a quote recently that said, "It's not the years in your life that count, it's the life in your years." (I believe Abe Lincoln said it.) So, I decided to take a risk and try something new, something totally out of my comfort zone. It was between public speaking and triathlon, and triathlon won.

To train for the triathlon, I've joined the Team in Training program through The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. So not only will I get help training for the triathlon, but will be able to help cure these blood cancer diseases by fundraising at the same time.

I'll be blogging my way through my training - so you can read about my experience, but also so I can look back and see what I've accomplished. Plus, I figure if I publish what I'm doing, it won't be very easy to quit and quietly sneak away.

My official training starts November 9 with a swim session. I'll keep you posted on my progress. In the meantime, if you'd like to help with my fundraising effort, you can visit my Team In Training home page at http://pages.teamintraining.org/sd/lavatri09/kwatkins.