Thank You For Following!

First off, I have to thank all of you who have followed me during the past year, or past several months, or days.  Doesn’t really matter–I appreciate you all, as well as your comments, thoughtfulness, and encouragement.

These past 2.5 years have been my best years in my life, but have also included some of the most difficult issues I have faced as well–both personally and professionally.  Through it all, I had my training. Losing Dad was devastating, but being with him right up to the very end gave me solace I never thought I could handle.  Last night, at a celebration for a local poet at a downtown coffee house, I joined open mike night and read from my latest work about Dad’s (and our) journey.  I still cannot get through this segment without crying: read the post here==Christmas, 2010.

And today, as I left the gym, I saw my Dad’s (and mom’s) physician.  Dr. Fosnaugh was Dad’s protegé, he patterned his entire career off of Dad’s.  He is a genuinely kind man, like Dad, whose countenance exudes nothing but compassion, concern, and love.  He called Dad his hero, his mentor, a gentleman and a gentle man.  That’s what Dr. Fosnaugh is to me.  Anyway, it reminded me off all of the qualities Dad had that I wish I had.  Patience, perseverance, an incredibly generous and kind soul, softness and approachability.  A smile and a twinkle in his eye.  I miss him so much it hurts sometimes, but somehow, right before my heart breaks, I swear he reaches down and touches my heart to calm me and I begin remembering all of the wonderful times we shared together.  Even holding his hand in those last days and singing old cowboy songs.  Anyway, my promise to Dad, to get healthy, is a long process.  I thank all of you for accompanying me on this journey.

Through it all, training and getting healthy has given me a constant, something to strive for.  A goal to keep my mind occupied when I needed a distraction.

Last year I had a coach through Team-in-Training for the Lymphoma Leukemia Society.  This year, I’m on my own.  I have read a tons of books about training for a triathlon, and I have watched videos on youtube about swim technique and cycling drills on trainers.  In the end, none of that makes a difference if I do not get my a** off my chair and focus on myself.  Right?  Indeed.

That’s what I have found the hardest at times.  My schedule changes four times a year, pretty drastically.  It’s hard to find my “groove” as a full-time educator with shifting class times in the spring and fall, summer breaks with traveling and writing projects, and quick (well, for me) winter breaks filled with class preparation and writing projects.

This past year has been particularly challenging because my husband and I are down to one car.  We loaned our old pickup truck to my husband’s daughter while she lives here in town.  Now we just have my “old” car (1999 VW).   It’s hard to coordinate schedules, but we’re both motivated to continue our workouts this year and that really helps.  I almost have him convinced to do the Topeka Tinman, but I know he’s doing the Omaha Triathlon.  When the weather warms up, it won’t be a problem–we’ll bike everywhere we can again.

In the meantime, we struggle to find time to get to the gym.

Like today.  He had to fill in for a colleague this morning at 8:30am, so we couldn’t swim first thing in the morning (pool is too full before 7am).  I had a meeting, then physical therapy for my tennis elbow this afternoon after a series of meetings.  So we rushed to the pool after PT and found the pool empty at 3:00pm!  I even got to spend time in the hot tub afterwards.  What a delight!

The best part?  I do believe I had one of the most successful swims in a long time.  Remember, my average 100 yard is over 2:10.

I am thrilled with those numbers!  Really?  Best pace 1:42?!!!  That beats my former best pace by, oh, TEN SECONDS.

I have even bested my most recent average pace by NINE SECONDS!  Here’s a chart of my last four swims for comparison:

So, today was a good day.  And honestly, 100 of the yards were kickboard–and I included that in my Garmin results because I wanted to see how long it took me to kick across the pool (I’m *really* slow–need to work on my kick, obviously).  I did 100 pull, then I did 5×50 pyramid (ascend/descend).

My husband cannot understand why I average 10 strokes.  Yes, I like to breathe, so I tend to over glide FAR too much.  I worked on that a lot today–although the numbers don’t show it apparently.  I had a few 11s.  I also obviously had an 8 or two.  I’m really pleased with my speed/pace, my efficiency, and my SWOLF (confusing, but helpful when I do some lake swims).

So, there you have it.  A brilliant day in the pool.  One happy chica!

Have I told you how much I love my Garmin 910xt? 

And another good thing?  I graduated from PT today–yippy!

NOTE: If anyone needs a Garmin Cadence Monitor, carrying bag, handlebar attachment, or colored straps for the 910xt, let me know.  Garmin screwed up and sent me two shipments and I’m selling the others at a discount.  New in Box (I got doubles of everything:  two sets of cadence, two extra bags, one set of colored straps, one handlebar attachment, oh, and a quick release strap).  Contact me using my CONTACT ME page please!  I’ll make you a deal!

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