The most fun I've had being HOT and DIRTY. Well, almost...

It's been over a full week since racing Wildflower Triathlon, so I thought I'd walk down memory lane for a few.  Join me?

Leading up to the race, I was feeling strangely pulled together.  You know that feeling like, what the HELL am I forgetting because this seems too easy!?  Turns out, I didn't actually forget anything, which can only mean that my guardian angels worked their asses off that week.  Hallelujah.  Thank you.
My workouts all went well, though I was experience plenty of my usual pre-race tightness.  I headed to Cali on Wednesday, so I would have plenty of time to decompress and enjoy being out of town for a couple days.  But Wednesday I woke up feeling awful!  My joints ached, I felt nauseous and had a headache. Nice.  I tried to keep up with my calories, but only barely and only because I knew I HAD too.  Travel only seemed to make me feel worse, and by the time I arrived at my hotel in Paso Robles at 11pm, I was feeling worse.  I kept telling myself to NOT PANIC, there was plenty of time to pull myself together.  Or, so I hoped.
10 hours later, I woke up feeling like myself again - except every time I tried to eat.  UGH!  I spent the morning mostly being lazy, but managed to run to the store, put my bike together and head to the lake by 1pm to pick up my packet and take a dip in the lake.  This is when things really turned the corner.  As I arrived, there was almost no one around.  Not the massive crowds and caos that I'd anticipated.  WHEW!  I snagged my race packet and strolled down to the lake to hopefully loosen up, and to see what this Blue Seventy Helix was all about.  The wetsuit was amazing, it fit perfectly!  I still don't understand how it can be so incredibly snug, yet comfortable at the same time.  I don't really need to understand, but I most certainly appreciate!  As I did my short 15 minute swim, I felt better and better - quite unusual for me, since swimming generally isn't my "sanctuary".  Anyway, I left the lake feeling GREAT!  AND excited to race in a couple days!!
Uh-oh, Friday already!!  My morning was again, pretty chill.  I took my bike out for a spin through the vineyards around Paso Robles, it was stunning, and so peaceful!  Most notably though, after my ride, my appetite returned!  I spent the rest of the day steadily working my way through a pretty significant pile of food supplies.  In the afternoon, I headed up to the lake again.

Most of my WATTIE INK teammates had arrived, so I was anxious to meet them and get my bike dropped off. As I walked down the path to the lake, I ran into my first Watties - Paul Brown and Gerry Foreman. It was like meeting long lost family!  Shortly after, I met a few more of my family (team) before heading up to my car for a quick nap before our team pictures.
After dropping my gear, I took a quick peak at the expo, where I actually met Kristin Mayer (Betty Designs)!!!!!  There we were @ Wildflower in the middle of NOWHERE California and she and her hubs were working their own both at the race expo!!  I couldn't believe it was really HER - I tried to casually look at the swimsuits I dream about and had no idea what to say, really, so I intrudcued myself, a quick chit-chat and took off before I tried to say something funny...that wasn't.  But seriously, it was really her, and I still can't believe it!

Haha, if only that was the ONLY moment like that I had during the weekend.  NOPE!
After that, I went to track down Wattie, to pick up my HELIX wetsuit and podium shirt.  And BOOM, there he was!  As he sorted through shirts, just casually said, "oh yeah, and that's Heather".  I peaked in the door, and sure enough, there was HEATHER JACKSON, just resting up.  And I found myself again speechless - absolutely shocked it was really her!  I don't know what I expected, but I'm just going to tell you now, she's a REAL person ya'll!  Just then, Paul Brown returned and saved me from one more second of awkward silence!  The rest of the night was pretty uneventful, I left the lake around 6:45, grabbed a quick sandwich on my way back to the hotel, made sure everything was laid out and ready for the morning, set my alarm and counted myself to sleep.
Race morning - YEEHAW!!  As usual, I gave myself plenty of time to get to the race, arriving and parked by 6:15am, 3 hours before I was set to start.
But, before I knew it we were off!!  I had a decent swim start, it was pretty typical of me, still not the most confident swimmer, but at least I didn't panic!  Did I mention how AMAZING my new wetsuit is?  I L.O.V.E. it! Blueseventy Helix.  Get one.
It was already time to bike :)  I landed my flying mount, and was off!!  There is a pretty good climb right from the start, which allowed me a great opportunity to pass a LOT of people - let the fun begin!  Rolling hills usually make it difficult to establish a rythm, but I managed to settle in pretty quick and the miles just clicked on by.  And BOOM, I was staring up Nasty Grade...if you haven't done it, spoiler alert: it's NASTY!!  Not only that, it was well into the 90's with a nice hot head wind.  I was warned to keep my RPE in check due to the difficulty of the run, but that is NOT my strength.  Basically I pushed until I was literally too hot to push any harder.  My head felt like it was on fire, the beating sun and lack of adequate ventilation made my helmet an absolute oven.  For a second I started to worry, but since the only way out of this was to finish, I just tried to climb faster to minimize the amount of time I was out in the heat.  Logic.
Once I hit "T2", I had recovered.  It felt SO GOOD to run!  I was loving it.  Until, of course, I hit the climb between miles 3-5.  It sucked.  My run began to osilate between walking and jogging, while my heart rate only continued to soar.  Not only that, my stomach started to feel ill, and I started to get chills.  DON'T PANIC.  Stay calm.  Carry on.  I didn't feel like I could keep anything down, but I knew I had to try.  I forced down a PowerBar Gel and some water and shuffled onward.  I have had so many big races go so terribly wrong, and all that played in my head those 2 miles were the words of my coach - "you deserve a good result, go get it".  Between miles 5 and 6, I started to recover and by mile 6 I was feeling good again.  Since it was so hot, I decided I better be a little conservative still.  Until about mile 9 I ran well under where I'm usually comfortable racing, but I just couldn't hold back anymore!  With only 4 miles to go, I poured it on and felt GREAT and I was having fun!  It did help that Eurostar was there to get me through the last hill!!
People were cheering that I was the 1st AG female finisher - seriously!?!?  I don't think the announcer had time to notice, he was too focused on trying to pronounce Wenatchee...3 tries and still wrong! 
Post race was just as surreal - hanging out with my Wattie teammates.  All I can say is, I want some of their awesomesauce! 

After awards, I had to get my butt out of town to catch a few zzzzs before heading to the airport at 4am.  It took me less than 5 minutes to dismantle and pack up my bike - RECORD!  By the time I arrived at my hotel in SanJose, it was after midnight.  Ugh.  4am came too fast, and just like that, I was already home and whlole thing was over.
Even now, it's hard to believe that it actually happened, I had a good result at a BIG race.  I couldn't be more grateful!  HUGE thanks to my family, coach Jason Jablonski of SET Coaching, Gale Fruit Company, Wattie Ink, all my teammates, and sponsors: K-Swiss, Power Bar, ISM Saddles, Blueseventy, Speedfil, Reynolds, Scott, Kask & Fuel Belt.
Sweeeeeet reward!!

Pre-Wild Flower

As I sit at my computer trying to pin down everything going through my mind as I prepare for Wild Flower - I realized that I was trying to figure out a way to write about my joy and excitement in a way that wouldn't come across as boastful or arrogant...or...the list goes on.
That, AND, how I can't breathe!!!  Ugh!  Between allergies, the wind and changing air pressure, I feel like I'm suffocating half the time.
WAIT a sec, WHY am I trying to come across as anything other than what I am?  Why am I AFRAID for people to know how truly excited I am?  What good can possibly come of holding my emotions hostage?!?!

So, if you don't mind, I'm going to share exactly what is going through my mind and heart.
Without so much as a blink of an eye, I have been living back in Wenatchee for 5 months.  On top of moving, let's just say I have been through a lot - both good and bad.  (translation =  emotional roller coaster)
It absolutely helps that I'm still reeling from a few successes in racing this past month!  It's still fun to think back on the Duathlon and beating all the guys...by 2 minutes :)
Doing all this work, I was starting to think that maybe I just couldn't change my mental game, but like with any training, all that hard work is starting to pay off!!!  ***dancing in my chair***

Physically I feel pretty great too!!  I know where I'm at with my training, which is to say I have a ways to go, but am so happy to be where I am right now and to know how much improvement I've made from a year ago.
I know Wild Flower is a tough course with some pretty fierce competition, but I'm bringin' my A game, and can hardly wait to meet up with some of my new teammates!!
For once I have confidence to embrace my fears, instead of trying to pretend I don't have them.

Fortune

Monday was a weird day for most of us.

Much of my morning was spent reeling from the highs of watching the Elite Women racing in the Boston Marathon.
Once I heard about what happened in Boston, the rest of the day was spent more-or-less in a daze, trying to sort through news articles, horrific pictures and my own myriad of emotion.

There is not one single day I can think of that I don't recognize how extrememly fortunate I am for all that I've been given and have in this life.
Though my heart is absolutely broken for those dealing with injuries or worse from the bombs in Boston, it is at the same time absolutely full with joy for all that I am grateful for and honored to have.

Fast forward to today and I am even more grateful and filled with joy!  Yesterday I raced in the Wenatchee Half Marathon, and beat my time from last year by over 3 minutes!  That, in itself, is a huge accomplishment.  But, it wasn't my biggest accomplishment of the day.  Last year, I was filled with anxiety, knowing my potential, but doubtful I would ever get there.  I was exhausted before the race even started and ended the race as an emotional roller coaster.
This year, I was focused, but also calm and confident.  I have been working tirelessly on my mental game.  Rehearsing over and over what to say in every situation.  I was in perfect position at the turn around, and for the next couple of miles had a stream of cheerleaders as the rest of the runners were approaching the turnaround.  But, that didn't last forever.  When I got to the inevitable wall, and saw my pace had slowed significantly, I didn't give up.  BREATHE.  I remembered Boston, and all those runners that had just cheered me on, and I repeated "I believe I can" over and over and slowly, but surely, my pace picked back up and spirit soared!!  Yes, I missed my goal, but I was elated. I finished the race PROUD for not giving up.
Those who say "never, never, never give up" are on to something - if you do, you will never know what's possible.

I am so fortunate to have such an amazing support team in my family, friends, community and Watties.
Thank you so much for standing by me :)

Love and Gratitude!!

Sarah

Well, that's never happened before!

Most people living in the NW consider any race in April exceptionally early.

Though I knew there weren't going to be thousands, or even hundreds of participants, I treated the Apple Capital Spring Duathlon just like I plan to approach all my races this year, a little different and a lot better.

It's been inspiring to hear all the stories and success from fellow Wattie Ink teammates so far this year.  Of course, it also brought pressure.  Knowing that I couldn't very well just decide not to ever race this year, I had to just rip off the band-aid and lay it on the line.  It's been so long since I've raced, I didn't really know how my body was going to respond.  Unlike in the past, I did not let myself worry about it, but instead got excited.  Excited to see what would unfold.  For the past year, I have been diligently practicing my self talk, and finally in the last few months I've had faith enough in myself to apply it.   Yes it's taken a while...what can I say, I have thrived on being hard on myself my whole life, it's been a tough to break.  

Anyway, it's certainly not been easy, but it IS going well!  

Considering my legs were sore and tight from my workouts during the week, I knew this was going to take some real work and preparation.

I re-listened to a podcast by Trish Blackwell, Nobody Cares, and pulled out my Magical Running book by Bobby McGee the night before to further establish my mental racing strategy.  No problem, I got this. 

Of course, come race morning and the closer it got to race start, the harder it was to stick with my plan, but I did pretty well!  I tried not to let the fancy bikes and flashy race kits get the best of me and stick with my simple strategy of - race to win.  

As we toed the line, I made my usual one-liners at the start to try and cut some of the tension in the air... and before I knew it the gun had fired and we were off and running!

I tucked in behind the lead guy since it was windy, I figured I shouldn't do all the work.  After about 1k, the pace slowed, I knew I was strong enough to push it into the wind, so I took the lead and pushed the pace.  I tried to be a little safe with the wind, but if I wanted to win, I figured I needed to make these guys work on the run or I wouldn't be able to hold my own on the bike.  It seemed to be working as I lead the whole first run, into and out of transition. 

The first part of the bike was into the wind as well, with some good rollers so I knew if I could put some distance between us at the start, I would be able to get out of sight and keep a little pressure off.

It worked!  But after being in the lead for almost 15 min, I started to worry and second guess what I was doing.  Am I going to hard?  Is there something I don't know?  Ugh - STOP it and RIDE!!  And that was the last I even gave it a thought.  Just then Rocky passed me, he was a team rider, and I knew for sure he has a stronger bike than me.  Perfect, I'll use him as a carrot - just keep him in sight!  That kept my motivation up for the rest of the ride and I was able to stay focused and keep pushing.  

As I headed into T-2, I still had the lead.  Huh, weird...and AWESOME! 

Don't think, just GO!!  And GO I did!! 

After the turn around I finally saw 2nd place, about 1k behind me.  Ok, I thought, at least 3 minutes.  If they are going to catch me, they are going to have to suffer!!  There was 1k left into the head wind on a slight up-hill, so I pushed as hard as I could there, then once we turned out of the wind, I picked up my pace to about 5:30 and was able to hold HIM off for the W!!!  Not to mention by 2:23, and over a 2 min PR!

BOOM!!

I'm so grateful for all the support I have from family, friends, Gale Fruit Company my uber inspiring Wattie Ink teammates and all of our amazing sponsors!  It was my first race using both K-Swiss shoes and PowerBar nutrition - both of which I loved - THANK YOU!  ISM saddle = happy buns!  Looking forward to a fun season and trying more great stuff from: Kask, Reynolds, Blue Seventy, Speedfil, Fuel Belt and Scott :)

Trouble With the Curve

Just for the record, not one of my favorite movies.
Moving on.

This past week has been interesting.  It seems like no matter what, the curve balls just keep coming!
It's good, it's like a test to make sure I'm paying attention.  To everything.  All the time.

On weeks like this, I'm grateful for my training.  Grateful that nearly every day, I have the opportunity to practice not quitting.  It's not easy, but I know the rewards and know it will be worth it.

They never said it would be easy, they just said it would be worth it.

Good comes from good.

Just to be honest, the past couple weeks have been pretty rough.  As I sit here for what seems like the hundredth time trying to identify what lessons I'm learning or something others can reep benefit from, I feel lost.  So, I'm just going to start typing and see what happens...  Hang on!

Have you ever noticed that even though things seem pretty awful sometimes, that every so often someone will swoop in out of the blue and offer some sort reprieve from the discomfort?  Did you ever consider that it's feedback from positive energy that you put in motion?  You have to pay attention because when you're feeling down, it's easy to overlook everything positive in your life...but it's there, trust me!  Lucky for me, I'm in a position where I don't have a lot of time to dwell on my short comings because I fill up most of my time motivating and inspiring others to overcome just such obstacles.
And sometimes that's exactly all you need to do.  Turns out, I'm not the only one who can attest to that - check out this video on confidence:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x73YyqOxXzo
 
Yes, it's easy for me because technically that's my JOB, but you can do the same thing.  Even if it's sending a quick text to someone, giving them a call or writing a letter (yes, an actual handwritten note). It does take a little bit of work on your end, but trust that people will feed off your positive energy and send it right back to you.
So, today my message is to get out there lift someone up today.  It could be a friend, colleague or even a complete stranger.  Trust me, it will come back to you.

Have a great day!!

When the going gets tough, the tough get going!

This past week was the 3rd of 4 tough training weeks in a row, and I'm pleased to report it was a success - and by that I mean, I'm still alive and I haven't killed anyone!  Towards the end of this week, I started to feel the toll of all the work I've been doing, in the form of mental and emotional fatigue.  For those of you that don't know what I mean, I would liken this state to PMS.  A little tired, but not so much "sleepy tired", as much as the kind of tired when everything makes you mad, frustrated, or break down in tears.

On a good note, I have managed to make significant gains in my fitness and stay relatively focused and productive at work...at least, as far as I'm concerned.  Okay, okay, at least I'm still GOING to work ;)

For those of you that haven't been here (this level of fatigue) before, this is where all those mental skills come in to play.  This past week would have been one in the past where I would have either given myself an "out" on a workout or had a complete melt-down in the middle of one... most likely at the pool.  But this time, I knew it was coming.  I kept my mental skills tool box with me, and used them every day...whether I needed to or not.  Even on my "recovery" workouts, I congratulated myself on how well I got through them, how much better my technique has gotten, etc.  By the end of the week, I felt amazing!  I all but flew through 4 hours of riding on Saturday, nailed my swim set and topped it off with an endurance tempo run on Sunday, without even batting an eye!

Don't get me wrong, I have always loved training, but getting through 3 weeks of 17+ hours in a row and feeling great physically and mentally, has never happened.  I have always been a believer in mental training, but never had the confidence in my own voice to make gains.  I know that in order to get where I want to go, there is no room or time for self-doubt and fear.

Today, I'm re-stocking my tool box for another tough week of training.  BRING IT ON!!!