Thoughts that Could Provoke a Headache

I've had headaches this entire week.  Every day around 4 or 7, I've gotten a headache.  Wednesday it started at 3:45 pm and lasted all the way through the rest of my work day, through my Junior League Meeting (which was a long one - this planning a brand spanking new program stuff takes some doing, I tell ya), and all the way home.  Not sure if it's a bad thing to take 1 aspirin and 1 execedrin migraine together, but it and sleep seemed to work (and at least I didn't take the full dose of the migraine medicine...).  Yesterday it started around 7 pm.  I had flashing lights but only when I closed my eyes, and sensitivity to light.  I only took the aspirin (I have to take one every night with my 1000mg of niaspan since my cholesterol while good decided that with my thyroid being it's little self that now it would be the evil crunchy kind of cholesterol - at least that's the doctor's theory because you know it's all hormonal.) I woke up with a mild headache this morning, and when Mr. Darcy rubbed my back it was like needles (No, I didn't tell him that.).  So what a good reason not to train right?  I decided - no excuses.  I'd like to drop 10 more pounds (not sure how many I've dropped because I'm not getting on a scale, but I'd definitely fitting into my size 8's again) by my birthday.  August 26.  I'll be 35.

I got Mr. Darcy to bring the trainer inside for me (it's a rainy grey day here), and I did 45 minutes on the trainer. (I had hoped for 60 but we had a late start to the workout due to Mr. Darcy and I not getting out of bed until a later hour of the morning.)  10 minute warm up, 5x1 one legged pedaling (both sides of course), a 5 minute recovery spin, 10 minutes at 95-100 cadence, and then a 10 minute cool down.  I'm pretty sure I hit that 95-100 cadence too... the entire 10 minutes I kept having the urge to put myself in a higher gear, which is what I do when I am on the road and my cadence is 95-100.  Amazingly, my headache went away during the ride and for about 30 minutes afterwards.

As soon as I got off the bike, I made my smoothie (strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries, almond butter, whey protein, water and ice - yum!) and hear a commercial for some sort of treadmill with this incline that supposedly would blast the fat away.  And one of the selling points was that there is a video screen that lets you run or walk or whatever through any place in the world, including the route of the Boston Marathon.  A woman said, "I can run or walk anywhere I want to in the entire world - all from the privacy of my own home!"  I couldn't help but think that this is what's wrong with Americans.  Excuse my "french" but why the F#ck would I want to run inside while pretending to run outside?  If I'm ever fast enough to qualify for the Boston Marathon, I'm not going to be satisfied by "running the course" while on my treadmill.  And until that time, I shouldn't be okay with "running the course" on my treadmill.  The privacy of my own home does not equate to the world outside - you know, the one with people and culture and amazing sights? 

Granted, I realize that I spent the morning training session on a bike trainer inside, but that's because it was RAINING.  The world is out there.  You have to go find it.

And that led me to think more about what has been ailing me - and what I think might (other than the high pollen count) be causing my headaches this week.  I have a source of unhappiness that I got to get away from while on vacation, and now that I'm back so is the unhappiness.  The economy prevents me from doing much about it, but I'm going to keep trying.  Eventually something, the right something, will be there and when it is, I'll be ready.  But for now, I need to suck it up and hang in there while I try to find what I'm looking for in the world out there.

Last night, I literally dreamt about what I've been eating.  I'm going to try to go almost full paleo as part of my paleo zone.  Still eating in the proportions of the Zone, but I think I'm going to try to faze out dairy.  I have a strange love for cottage cheese and cheese in general, but since I've been eating more paleo it's almost like I can taste salt in my low fat cheese. And only salt.  Same with the deli meat - and we get the low sodium stuff.  Plus, I feel like there's some sort of chemical aftertaste after I eat the deli meat.  Not to mention canadian bacon. Ugh. So I'm imagining that this is going to be a little bit of a pain because I'll have to cook my meat for lunches from now on, but while I may hold on to fat free cottage cheese for a little bit longer I think I'm going to go without dairy and deli. We'll see how it goes.

I've also been contemplating what it is that has caused me to lose some of my "mojo" if you will for triathlon this year.  And I think that it's a couple of things... primarily that it is not new any more, and second my kids are old enough to want their Mommy around more, or at least to notice when I'm not there, and third I LOVE being with my kids and if the world were a perfect place in which I did not have to work I would be happy home with them full time.  And I've sort of noticed in my attempts to put my schedule together, I'm good at doing workouts that someone tells me to do (even if it's me), but I'm not altogether sure why the workouts are the way they are and how I need to change them to fit the fact that I can go the distance now.  Sprint, Oly, HIM.  I know I can do it.  The question is how fast can I do it.  I want to get faster.  The first year was about being able to do it.  The year should have been about doing it faster, but I'm realizing it part way through my year.  My workouts aren't completely aligned with my goals.  So I'm working on that (with the help of a RockStar and some other friends)... and I found some good articles (including one by Matt Fitzgerald) about cycling workouts.  And now that I understand a little more about the cycle of training for the year, I'm going to try to plan next year better (Recovery Period, Base Building, Peak Cycles - see the Tri Bible did sink in a bik) and to tie it also to the Tri Power book.  That book is awesome but I'm completely confused as to how to fit it in at this part of the year... so I'll start by planning out next year with it in place.  It's as though the clouds have lifted. 

I'm starting to look forward to the Moss Park Tri on the 17th.  Still wierded out about the swim, but since I switched to the sprint for this one I'm feeling a little better about it. 750m with a couple hundred people should be okay for scaring off random alligators.  And my race plan is just pound out everything I can on every leg.  I've always "saved some in reserve for the next leg."  This time, I want to kill it.  I realize that I may not be as fast as I would like even with killing it since the past few weeks have been rough in getting my training in, but I want to know that I gave it my all on every leg.  I aim to win Big Daddy Diesel's pukie award and to still finish with a smile on my face. DNF is not an option.  The only thing that has been bothering me mentally about the race is that this is the same course I crashed on last year.  So I've been working on mentally picturing that turn and me making it out of the turn in a lovely way and continuing on the ride like a bat out of hell.  And I'm working on not worrying about dying on the run after doing my absolute hardest on the other legs. It will all work out!

The girls did great at the dentist yesterday morning - which functioned as my workout yesterday.  Hefting Ladybug into the car and having to put her seatbelt on her while she tried to fight me off was all I managed to get in since their appointment was 1 1/2 hours long.  After pitching a fit about not going for 3/4 of the way there, Ladybug declared that "Going to the dentist isn't so bad, I kind of like it!"  And evidently said to one of her teachers about going to the dentist "what you have to realize is that they're giving you healthy teeth so you can be healthy!"  Her teacher swore that was the exact quote. The kid cracks me up!

Happy Independence Day Weekend to you all - whether racing, training, or cooking out.  I hope it's a great one!