Running and Too Much Quiet

Today I ran an "easy" 40 minutes. Believe it or not, it did seem easy today. I alternated 6 minutes running with 2 minutes walking, and even with doing that I went farther in 32 minutes than I used to be able to do in 45. I was pretty happy. However, my shins were not as happy but luckily these days they only hurt for the 1st 3-5 minutes and then only a few minutes after I finish. So, I think they are on the mend. Let's keep our fingers crossed on that one... these chronic shin splints are a bit annoying. I've changed shoes, tried orthotics, but to be truthful I think it's just getting in better shape and changing my running posture that may be what I needed.

Other than running, the girls are doing (knock on wood) amazingly well with potty training. This week Ladybug has not had any accidents, and Angelfish has only had 3. Two at school and one at home. We still have to be vigilant because sometimes they don't want to tell you they have to go because they're having too much fun doing something else and don't want to stop, especially Angelfish. But, I'm rather proud of them even if both of them now tell me "Don't say Yay to me Mommy." I guess they're too big for cheering when they go in the potty now. Let's hope it keeps up... pull ups are not cheap.

I have had to admit to myself that life has been a little hard on me lately. The Team in Training workouts are good for me because I actually get to talk to people, and I love my triathlon training, but I need more social interaction. Take a very social, happy woman away from her group of friends, her clubs and social functions, her charity work, and her office place. Put her in a new town with one girlfriend (thank goodness for her), working from home, the only volunteer opportunities she can find only let you volunteer during the work day, and she pretty much only leaves the house to train or to pick her girls up from daycare. What is the result of this little social experiment? Someone who is on the verge of saying she's somewhat unhappy (which is pretty tough for a formerly perennially happy person). I think the issue is that everything I do is on a schedule, I rarely do anything impromptu any more, and I lack time with friends. I used to be "plan? what plan?" Now my day is full of tasks that I must fulfill without a chance to do much playing. My workouts are awesome, but then there's the tasks that need to get completed for the day from the girls needs, wants, and whinings, to working, to cooking dinner so we don't have starving children (the truth is, if I don't cook we either don't eat or eat junk), to housework and laundry, and somewhere in there trying to get a few minutes to spend talking to my hubby, let alone trying to find any time to wind down from the day.

Part of this is being the mother of toddlers of course. I can't just flit off and do something different and exciting on a whim (there are diaper bags, snacks, drinks, attempting to reason with toddlers, and car seats involved). Well, maybe I could but I think DFACS would be involved, and plus I wouldn't want to do that to my precious love muffins. But I think the majority of this conundrum is that I miss people. Sure, people can be annoying sometimes but overall people are simply wonderful... their different opinions, their ideas, how they look at the world, what they choose to look at in the world, and their different backgrounds. What better entertainment and life experience can you have than meeting other people? So, I'm on a mission to make friends. How and where I will find these friends, I haven't the slightest idea... hopefully it will work itself out.

But for now, I'm off for a snack...

Swimmy Swim Swim

Today was a nice mile long swim, consisting of a 100 warm up, a 200 swim, 3 sets of 100 swim, 100 pull, 100 kick with only enough interruption to change gear (which was pretty easy since I forgot my kickboard today... too bad that made it harder to do the 100 kicks...) and then what was supposed to be a 200 swim and a 200 cool down that I turned into a 400 swim and out of the pool. Have I ever mentioned how much I love to swim? What? Only a few zillion times and with poems on occasion? Oh, well, then consider it said again.

Angelfish this morning was really amusing. She found a plastic cup, put a balloon on top and started singing "Happy Birthday" and at the end, she blew out the pretend candles on top. The girls are all about birthdays right now because a lot of their little friends at school are turning 3. I asked them what type of birthday party they wanted in June, and Angelfish said "a really big one!" and Ladybug said "one with cake!" (That's my girl!) Ladybug this morning was very stuffy as the latest victim on the head cold circulating the household. When she said her lips were chapped it took us 4 times to finally figure out what she was saying. Let's hope it's short lived... kind of like today's blog entry.

Until tomorrow!

I LOVE my bike!

Yes, it's official. I am absolutely in love with my bike. Yes, I know I said that before about my old bike... but that was before I knew what an amazing bike ride could be like and I always knew the Trek had faults. But, the Fuji Roubaix Pro is my new main squeeze. I took my first long ride this morning, and it was great! I took it easy on the first 8 miles so I could get to know my bike a little better. But, it's like I already know it. I get on, and it does basically what I think about telling it to do. And it's fast. It was rather windy this morning (and a brisk 42 degrees), so I wanted to be a little cautious... I am, after all, in a completely different position than on my old bike, and balancing on tires that are probably 1/4 of the width of the old bike, and it handles so much better but is also so much more sensitive to my movements than the old bike.

At one point I was biking 15.5 mph! Yes, for an experienced cyclist that would be slow, but for me that was perhaps the fastest I've gone when I wasn't biking downhill. Even with the wind and my going slower for the first 8 miles, I finished my 18 mile bike ride in the time it took me to do 15 miles on my old jalopy. (Poor Trek, see how quickly it's relegated to the back of the bus?)

I will have to get used to a few things with my body position... like remembering to bend my elbows to get into a bigger tuck, the overall tuck position, and the fact that my head isn't up like before and I need to look up with my eyes more than my whole head (crick in the neck). I also either need to have more practice or get my clipless pedals loosened because I fell over 2 out of the 3 times I needed to unclip today because I couldn't get my feet out fast enough and was going too slow. The first time was on grass but the 2nd was on concrete and it hurt. ... thank goodness I was going rather slow and had on long bike pants. And I will have to get a new pair of bike gloves because my old ones don't have the padding in quite the right spots and my thumbs got a little numb by the end of the ride. But even with the things I need to get used to, it was amazing. I have a need, a need for speed!!!

My new love... my Fuji!

A Mixed Bag

I am back from the doctor and done with my day of work, and as promised here is my blurb about my doctor's appointment and cholesterol. The news was a mixed bag of tricks.

The good news is that my cholesterol overall dropped from 269 to 220, but the bad news is that my good cholesterol dropped by 10 points too. She wanted to put me on a low dose of crestor, especially because my Dad and Grammy have familial hypercholesterolemia (Dad makes 1.5 times the normal amount of cholesterol and Grammy is 2x normal) but I talked her into letting me have 3 more months. She said I can have the 3 months if I take 3 grams of fish oil and a red rice yeast tablet each day (the red rice yeast evidently produces something that's a low grade statin, but it's over the counter). So we’re going to try that.

Of course, it didn’t help that it was a different doctor than I saw the last time and I have white coat syndrome so my blood pressure was high 135/90, which is normal for when I meet a new doctor because evidently I have a nervous subconscious. If I'm not meeting a new doctor for the first time and I like the doctor, it's 117/76 or around there. So, she wants me to keep a record of my blood pressure and wants me to go to Publix and have it taken once a day for the next 3 months. I told her that once a day was unlikely, but that I could do once a week. She said that whatever I could do was fine, as long as it wasn’t less than once a week. If it wasn't for the triathlon training and my agreeing to the supplements, it was straight to the pharmacy for me.

So now I just have to find a GNC!

Point of Clarification...

I received a question from one of my dear readers, so I thought I would give some clarification to my hatred for Orange Cycle that I posted yesterday:
1. Orange Cycle is the bike shop that I went to when we 1st moved to Orlando to try to help my hybrid be a better racing bike without having to buy a road bike at that point. So, they fleeced me back in September. It was only now that I realized how much they had taken advantage of me... releasing my ire on them (and a bit on myself for letting it happen).
2. I did not buy my new bike (or anything else) from Orange Cycle. Cheap used car salesmen of bike shops as they are. Even when I went to test the Cannondale and Specialized bikes I felt like they were trying to do a pressure sale.
3. I bought my wonderful new Fuji Roubaix Pro from a great shop - Advanced Pro Cycles, which is down by the airport on Semoran - that I highly recommend. They take the time to explain things, love to ride, have champion triatheletes and cyclists on staff, and like to educate people about bikes and biking. Their prices are rather good as well.

So to sum things up... ADVANCED PRO CYCLES GOOD; Orange Cycle BAD. I will post more later after my dreaded doctors appointment to discuss my recent cholesterol test that all I could get the nurse who called to tell me was that it was a "little bit" better. I may be asking to get referred to a cardiologist because I can't figure out how to eat any healthier (we follow all the low to nonfat dietary restrictions, etc.) and it turns out that a genetic cholesterol issue runs in the family called familial hypercholesterolemia. Plus, if 40+ miles of cardio each week isn't enough exercise, I don't know what is!

Orange Cycle Sucks!

Yes, it's a double posting in one day. But when I realize I've been had, I don't get mad. I get even. And while I am not necessarily widely read in the blogosphere, I will still have my 2 cents to say. DON'T EVER SHOP AT ORANGE CYCLE! ALL THEY WANT IS YOUR MONEY.

In September, when I was first bit with the triathlon bug, I went to Orange Cycle in Orlando with my hybrid to see what I could do to improve my efficiency on the bike. I was sold handle bar extensions that I didn't need and was told it would help me get a little more aero - lie! It made my elbows stick out which causes more wind resistance. Second, I was sold clipless pedals and a pair of biking shoes. At the time I specifically asked if I would be able to use the shoes on a road bike if I ever bought one and I was told YES. Well, I find out today that answer was kind of like Bill Clinton asking what the definition of "is" is. If I were to put MOUNTAIN BIKE pedals on a road bike then the bike shoes would have worked, but because of how they are constructed the shoes can't work with road bike pedals because there isn't enough room to put the brackets on the shoe so they can clip in. And this shop was honest. They showed me everything and explained it all and even offered to let me return the clipless pedals I was buying if I wanted to put the old pedals on the new bike and use the old shoes on the bike. I decided to go with the new pedals and new shoes but I have vowed to NEVER BUY FROM ORANGE CYCLE again and I will encourage others to not frequent them either!

My new baby...

I apologize for the hiatus in writing, but rest assured dear friends there has been no hiatus in training... just life getting in the way of my blogging as it is wont to do from time to time. And it is rather ironic that the last post I made was about biking. Even more ironic is the fact that in the last post I found a picture of a bike that I would love to own and posted it. Even more ironic than that is that I now own said bike and didn't even realize that I had a picture of it in my blog until this morning!!!

YES, I have a new baby. A beautiful white and black Fuji Roubaix Pro with Shimano 105 shifters, Shimano 105 front derailleur and a Shimano Ultegra (even better than the 105) back derailleur. And, I got it for $450 less than the MSRP that I saw online, which allowed me to get nicer clipless pedals and still save more than $350 off of that MSRP. And even better than that is the fact that it rides like a dream and is as though I am at one with the bike. It's fast, it's sexy and it's all mine!! WHOO HOO. So here's a picture (in case you didn't see it in the last post)...

Other than that we have been running around with chickens with our heads cut off. Work has been busy, then training of course, birthday parties, head colds, errands, cooking, cleaning, trying to catch up with ourselves, and children. But nothing that I would trade for the world.... although I wouldn't mind an extra hour or two in the day to help get things done and to help have some fun free time with my dear husband. Now if only the weather will warm up a bit by Wednesday morning so I can ride my bike!!

In all my rushing around, my brain has been thinking for me while I sleep, processing things that are said to me. (Thanks Coach!) Here are some thoughts that I've woken up with: 1) I need not to worry so much about my weight. I will just eat healthy, try to eat the right number of calories in the right proportions of fat, carb, and protein, and that will be that. Life is too short to worry about that! 2) I need to get new tubes for my new bike in case of a flat. 3) I want to be able to run a 7:30 mile (if not a 7 minute mile) by the May triathlon. 4) I need a vacation and to use my planner to remind myself of things I have to do!

Angelfish and Ladybug were super potty training champs this weekend. Both wore underpants all weekend long (except night time)! Ladybug only had one accident and it was during a nap (and we forgot to have them go potty before naptime), and Angelfish had 2 accidents - 1 when she was playing and wouldn't stop to go and the other also during a nap. Go wonder twins!

Overheard this morning in the car on the way to daycare:

Angelfish: Hold my hand, Mommy.

Mommy: I can't honey, I need to drive the car. I would love to hold your hand when we get to school though.

Angelfish: Ladybug, hold my hand.

Ladybug: Nooooo!

Angelfish: You hurt my feelings.

Ladybug: I not want to hold hands.

Angelfish: That hurt my feelings!

Ladybug: I sorry. I do not want to hold hands right now, Amanda, but I love you.

Angelfish: But you hurt my feelings.

Ladybug: I not hurt your feelings. I said sorry. (If only it worked that way...)

Angelfis: Still hurt. Hold my hand.

Ladybug: Okay...