Bloomsday Preview....

Trifecta Finishers! Woop!

So, this last weekend Cor, Chris, some other friends and I ran in the Riverbank Run in Missoula. The Riverbank Run is great-it runs through downtown Missoula, campus, and along the river. Chris, Cor and I did this race last year and it was the first race for all of us. We loved it and had to do it again. Last year we all ran the 10K together and that was the initial plan this year...However, somehow Cor and I ended up signed up for the Trifecta...

So what's the trifecta? Well, the Riverbank Run has three different races you can run. First is the 10K, then an hour and a half later is the 5K, and an hour after that there is the mile run. Or, if you're into being crazy-you can run all three! Fun right? Actually it was a lot of fun and I 'm definitely glad we did it. After all, the race proved, once again-It's always worth it in the end!

We had a lot of fun in all the races. The 10K was really great. We took off about ten minutes from our 10K time from last year so that felt good. Chris ran in the 5K so it was fun to run that with him but the 5K was definitely more of a struggle than the 10K. My legs just didn't want to move! We had about half an hour to "rest" in between the 10 and 5K and during that half hour your legs cramp up pretty good. You'd think a rest would be nice but I actually wish there wasn't as much time between races.

The one mile wasn't too bad. Basically just wanted to finish it and finally be done! We were finally down close to the finish, running along the river and I was completely content to just coast in. However, Cor wasn't having it-"I'm going to push you and you're going to like it!" Haha. So we kicked it in and finished! It was a great day and a great race and I had a blast with Chris, Cor and everyone else!!

Trifecta Finishers! Cor, me, Emma, and Julie

Griz Triathlon 2009

The Griz has come and gone and all in all it was a great experience. As you all know-I was pretty nervous in the days leading up to the race. I was basically a mess and couldn't focus on much else. In the couple days before the race my friend Bryan (Shout out to a great coach/friend!) spent a lot of time with me "pimping out" my mountain bike as best he could, answering my numerous last minute questions, and attempting to keep me calm (I might have declared I was quitting a few times the night before). Anyway, I made it through the week and before I knew it, it was race day!

Mom drove up for the race the day before and it was great to have her around to take my mind off the race somewhat...I got up super early the day of the race since my heat was at 8:30 and headed over for the pre-race meeting with my friend Emma, who also completed her first triathlon :) Before my heat, I had some time to wait around at the pool by myself. Mom, Cor, and Chris weren't there yet and neither was anyone else I knew. I watched the beginning of the first heat of the day (8:00) and my heart was pounding like crazy! I could not calm down. Thank goodness Bryan walked into the pool shortly! Before I knew it I was in the pool waiting for my start-the first couple of laps went well but I still couldn't seem to calm down. I started having trouble getting my breathing under control because I was breathing too fast so I took a short break and collected myself and finished the swim. All in all, the swim didn't go too bad. Even with the one lap that I struggled with a bit, I completed the swim in 23 minutes (under my estimate).

I got out of the pool and ran outside to the transition area to get dressed for the bike. Pulling on my pants over my wet suit was harder than I thought it was going to be! The transition seemed to take forever but I got through it and on the bike. The bike went alright, a little longer than I would have liked though. During the first part of the bike I kept thinking about my swim, no matter how much I tried not to, so I was a little distracted and I think that hurt me. The second half of the bike went great though-I was really enjoying myself. One of my favorite things about the Tri was that when you would pass people during the bike or run (going the opposite way) everyone would yell "great job" or "looking good" to eachother. I thought that was awesome and sometimes it was exactly what you needed to hear. Very cool. As a guy was passing me at the beginning of the bike (hate to admit this but-he wasn't passing me going the other way unfortunately, just passing me) he yelled out "You go girl!" and gave me a huge smile. Sounds kind of silly but it really boosted my spirits and helped me focus on the bike finally instead of the swim!

Once the bike was over I dismounted (somewhat un-smoothly) and headed out on the run. The run definitely held the two hardest challenges of the whole race. I can't even explain how difficult it was to force my legs to run after getting off the bike at first. That first half mile of the run was killer! It felt like I was going nowhere-frustrating. The next challenge that awaited me was "the hill". Basically, the run course heads straight up Mt. Sentinel for a bit and it was steep! I did not even attempt to run up it and my calves were burning like crazy! Once that hill was over though it was home free-just half of the 5K left and I finally, finally crossed the finish line!

Crossing the finish line was perfect-definitely felt like I would never get there! Mom, Cor, Chris, Coach Bryan and some other friends were all there to celebrate and of course, take pictures! One of the other best things about finishing was the free food! Gotta love bagels :)

Anyway, the race was amazing, I'm so so glad I went through with it and can't wait for the next one. I signed up for a tri in Helena at the end of May that I'm very excited for.

Lastly, I want to say thank you to everyone who helped and supported me during this process. (Promise I won't be so high maintenance before the next race :) Mom-thank you so much for coming up to watch! I'm so glad you could be there and celebrate with me. Cor and Chris-basically, thanks for putting up with me! Bryan-well...where do I start? You helped me a ton and I definitely couldn't/wouldn't have done it without you. Your passion for the sport kept me motivated until the end and I owe you big time. I'm sure we can figure something out ;)

One race down! I week until the Riverbank Run, 2 weeks until Bloomsday, and 6 weeks until the Queen City Triathlon in Helena! Love it :)

Mission Accomplished!

Just some pictures for now...when I'm feeling more motivated I'll write a little more :)

28 people in a seven lane pool is pretty crazy!

Out of the pool! (23 minutes)

Transition from swim to bike

Dressed and ready to ride

Finished! 1 hour and fifty minutes

Me and Mom :)

Me and Cor-ready to refuel

Me and Christopher :)

Me and my "coach"

Me and Erica and the sweet sign she made!

The TRI countdown has officially begun..........5 more days!!

I am so so excited and so so terrified at the same time! I went and rode the bike route this afternnon and it wasn't too bad. There's one main hill...towards the end of the ride that is a little challenging but whatever. It was a pretty windy ride too...it's through the canyon so pretty sure it's always windy which is not so cool. The ride took me a little longer than I had initially hoped but that's ok. I need to remember to go into the race without setting my expectations too high. I need to remember that this is my first TRI and I will be thrilled just to complete it :)

***Lovin it***

I really am lovin this training lifestyle and I really don't want to stop after the Griz.....so I have a few more races to add to my summer plan.

April 11-Grizzly Triathlon
April 25-Riverbank Run (10K)
May 3-Bloomsday in Spokane (12 K) *7.46 miles of fun :)
May 30-Queen City Triathlon in Helena (sprint distance like the Griz)
July 12-Missoula Marathon (I would run the half-this is tentative for now)

I am super excited for all of these races. Cor, Chris and I ran in the Riverbank and was the first race for all of us. We loved it and are all doing it again.

Bloomsday is a race in Spokane that has been there for years and is crazy. There are like 55,000 people who run in it, one year it was even the largest foot race in the US. The race is supposed to be tons of fun-there are bands around every corner and is through downtown Spokane, mostly by the river and Riverfront Park. Chris and I are going with a few friends from here and my friend Jen from Gonzaga is going to meet us there as well. It will be fun to spend some time in Spokane and see Jen again!


The Queen City Triathlon is another sprint distance tri that is aimed at beginners with a swim in the pool and the same distances as the Griz (swim-1000 yds, bike-12 mi, run-5 K). I'm excited to continue with triathlon and my friend Emma is going to do it too. Yeeeah!

The Missoula Marathon-I would like to run the half marathon so we'll see how it goes. I plan to train for it and test my knees. My knees have felt pretty strong throughout my training so I think I could definitely do the half.

....let's see-I feel like there's something else big happening this summer that belongs on my agenda....OH yeah! August 15! I'm getting married :) Chris and I booked our plane tickets last week for Playa Del Carmen....can't wait!!!

Am I alive??

Right-so I haven't posted forever. Don't worry though...I'm still just as committed as ever, I just have about a million things going on at once. No excuse though. Anyway....

***The Griz is looming, yes that is definitely the correct word. One minute I am so excited I can't stand it and the next I'm terrified. I have definitely had some pretty sleepless nights lately spent worrying how I'm going to pull on my pants over my wet swimsuit and how I will carry my Hammer Gel, you know-all the important details :)

I am in Week 12 with just two more weeks after this week before the tri. Weeks 11 and 12 make up the most important phase of the plan: The Race Focus Phase. During this phase some "Quality Day" workouts are incorporated which focus on a little bit of speed in addition to the usual endurance focus. For an idea of my workout for weeks 11 and 12:

Monday: 1500 yd swim, 60 min bike
Tuesday: 2000 yd swim, Quality Run (about 5 miles with varying intensity)
Wednesday: Quality bike (about an hour and a half)
Thursday: Quality swim (2300 yds), 30 min run
Friday: 45 min bike (optional)
Saturday: 1000 yd swim (optional), 60 min run
Sunday: 90 min bike, 30 min run (optional)

Training is definitely taking up a good deal of my time but I love it. I may not love it during a test week when I'm trying to fit in studying and homework as well but it's all about priorities.

I have had some great workouts over the past weeks and I'm loving running outside and I still can't believe the progress I have made over the past few months. I love thinking back to that first swim at the Y. Oh man, how far I have come-that in itself is such a great accomplishment and pushes me to do more.

After this week, I begin the "taper" which is two weeks long-the workouts decrease somewhat while still maintaining the endurance I have built up.

Next week is Spring Break and I will be headed home to Billings for the entire week. I'm very excited to get in some much needed wedding planning-and sleep!

LOL while running! ;)

Week number four is complete! It is already February and I cannot believe it. This semester is going so so fast. This week was a good one for training. The long swim on Wednesday wasn't too bad. My Friday swim was definitely worse. My arms were very tired. I asked a friend to watch me swim on Wednesday to see if she noticed anything major I could fix and she said I looked like I knew what I was doing and I didn't look like a fool so that was very exciting for me! My main concern with swimming is not looking like a fool and finishing before the 30 minute time limit. Pretty sure I don't want to be the person in the pool after 30 minutes that they have to tell to get out because I'm too slow! Anyway, she did say that if I felt comfortable I could try to breathe on both sides instead of just one, but it's not a big deal. She just does it because her neck bothers her when she only breathes on one side. I might try it but I think I would struggle not breathing as often.

I have found it to be a little difficult to get my long workouts in on the weekend with these weekend classes I've been taking. Class is Friday night, 8-5 on Saturday and 9-12 on Sunday. I have been doing both my long run and bike on Sunday after class which makes for some tired legs on Monday. I'm just too worn out after class all day on Saturday to do much. Anyway, I think it'll be alright cuz I'm still getting all my workouts in.


I discovered a new favorite thing when running today. So, I really love to read. However, I just haven't been able to make time to read like I wish I could so I thought I'd try an audio book and see how I liked running to a book instead of music. With running, my biggest thing to overcome is keeping my mind off the actual running. I get over running pretty quickly unless I last long enough to reach that point in the run where all the sudden it's enjoyable. You know, that point where all of the sudden it's easy and you could run forever? Anyway, so I downloaded a book today on iTunes. I figured a guilty pleasure book would be the best thing to run to so I could just enjoy my run. I downloaded a book I've been wanting to read by Chelsea Handler. She has that show-Chelsea Lately. Anyway, I think she's hilarious. I listened to the first two chapters and I loved it. The run went by so fast and I definitely laughed out loud a couple times. I love this new running companion! I ran outside for the first time since coming back to Missoula too! The roads are starting to de-ice so that was great too!

It's not quite the same as actually reading...nothing quite the same as cuddling up with a great book...but I will definitely be purchasing more audio books!

Week 5:

Monday: Swim 1250 yds, bike 45 min
Tuesday: Swim 1500 yds, run 30 min
Wednesday: Bike 60 min
Thursday: Swim 1500 yds, run 40 min
Friday: 45 min spin (optional)
Saturday: Run 45 min
Sunday: bike 75 min


**Is it bad that I'm already over school and it's only been a week???**

Workouts for Week 4

Lovin it. Fo sho.

Monday: Swim 1000 yds, bike 45 min
Tuesday: Swim 1500 yds (longest yet!), run 25 min
Wednesday: bike 45 min
Thursday:Swim 1250 yds, run 40 min
Friday: 30 min spin (optional)
Saturday: run 45 min
Sunday: Bike 60 min

***First week of classes***

Weeks 2/3

The last couple weeks have been busy, busy, busy! Aside from fitting in all my workouts I worked on a lot of wedding stuff, spent a couple weekends at Grandma and Grandpa's, made my way back up to Missoula and took a weekend class at the end of Week 3. I am convinced that things will be pretty crazy from now right up until August 15!

So, training:

Week 2 (seems so long ago now!)
After my very first swim workout (week 1) I set a goal for week 2 to complete all my swim workouts and make some serious progress with my swimming form. After the first swim this seemed like a goal that would be reachable but difficult. Turns out it wasn't too difficult...swimming is interesting. I've decided that being comfortable in the water is the most difficult obstacle to overcome and that just comes with time. By the end of week 2 I was very comfortable in the water and had my breathing down enough to concentrate on my strokes a little more. No more looking like a water polo player! Now that I could swim with my head completely under water and breathe well I asked Jim for some more tips. The main tips I worked on during week 2 were:

• Don't look straight down at the bottom of the pool, look ahead-this helped a lot becasue I think one reason I kept bringing my head out of the water was because I couldn't see where I was going and didn't like that


• My stroke with my left arm was good but the right arm slaps the water-I think because I breathe on my left side so I rotate well to the left but not enough to the right...still working on that a bit


• My legs kind of flail-hmmm...when I get tired my legs are definitely the first to quit doing what they should be


• My strokes cross my body and are too deep in the water-this was the last tip of week 2, kind of a hard one to correct


• Number one tip from Jim I get every day: RELAX

Anyway, swimming is going well and I'm starting to like it more and more everyday. Some days it is awesome and it seems like I just glide through the water so gracefully...other days it feels like I am dragging myself through the water instead (not so gracefully I'm sure). I think that will improve once I build up endurance-which is a process for sure.

Running and biking are still going well-no major issues to report which is a good thing. 60 minutes on a bike indoors is pretty killer though-I'm so ready for spring!

Week 3 was a recovery week so the workouts were basically the same as week one. The week went well and came at a great time because I left Billings for Missoula in the middle of the week. Lots of running around trying to finish things in Billings and then unpacking and getting back into school mode in Missoula, including a weekend class.

On Friday of week 3 I went to the Griz pool for the first time-the pool where the swim portion of the tri will be held. It was a little busier that I was used to at the Y, I had to share a lane which was new, but that's good because for the tri there will be 2-4 people per lane anyway. Better get used to it I guess and it will be good to get comfortable in that pool.

Wedding-wise I finalized the centerpiece designs I want for the round, banquet, and head tables and ordered/purchased everything I could to put the centerpieces together. One weekend in Big Timber we started cutting material for runners on the tablecloths and did some other random wedding things-grandma made an adorable ring bearer pillow, tied lots of ribbons for program fans, and have a pretty finalized guest list-finally! Save the dates can be expected in a couple months hopefully.

Sorry this post was so long-I'm going to try really hard to not have to fit 2 weeks into one post again. My bad.

P.S. It wouldn't be so boring either if Chels would tell me how to put pictures in my posts!

Week 1

Well my first week of training is officially complete and it went very well. My first swimming workout was definitely frustrating but I have improved since then with each swim and am very happy with my progress so far.

The first day I went to swim I was pretty nervous to say the least. I was pretty certain that I would be unable to complete the entire workout having not swam much since swim lessons when I was little. When I walked into the pool I became more nervous as I saw who was sitting in the lifeguard chair. The man sitting in the chair is named Jim and he helped me buy my new and awesome heart monitor. Jim has done triathlons for years so I didn't want to look like a fool. So I get in the pool and start swimming and I had barely even completed two laps and Jim is standing in front of my lane. "How far exactly is your swim?" he asked. I told him and he replied, "Well you have 14 weeks to learn how to swim with your head in the water then." I was pretty embaressed but I am actually really greatful that Jim was there-he helped me out and gave me some ideas to try. I just have a thing with water, I always have. I really don't like to have my head under water. I couldn't even snorkle in Hawaii! So, I was pretty frustrated with myself for most of my first swim workout but I am definitely beginning to get more comfortable in the water :)

The cycling and running workouts also went very well-legs a little sore by the end of the week but that's to be expected. Feels good! I'm excited for when I can bike and run outside though for sure.

Week 2:

Monday-Swim 1000 yds, Bike 45 min
Tuesday-Swim 1250 yds, Run 20 min
Wednesday-Bike 45 min
Thursday-Swim 1250 yds, Run 35 min
Friday-off
Saturday-Run 40 min
Sunday-Bike 60 min

Other than training, which was pretty consuming, I had a pretty good week. One big highlight was babysitting for some family friends (Amy and Keenan) with my mom. They have two adorable litle girls who I love and don't get to see as much as I'd like since I'm in Missoula. Anyway, they were a blast but the best part was definitely feeding Kenna (8 months) and rocking her to sleep. So precious. My mom and I went to Big Timber Saturday and Sunday to visit the grandparents and my mom, grandma, and I finished our wedding invitations! That was very exciting for me for sure. Cross that off the list!

Swimming is hard.

I have a lot of work to do. Swimming did not go so well yesterday but I know I can do it. I just have to learn how to swim from scratch. That can't be too hard, right?

Christmas "Break"

So far winter break has been anything but a "break." After returning from Tennessee I left the next day with my family for Vegas for Christmas. (Sooo glad I got to at least see Chels for 10 minutes at home before leaving for Vegas!) We were there for a week, one very busy week. The whole family came down for Christmas and we did plenty of my favorite things...namely shopping and eating! Also, the day after Christmas my sister and aunts threw a bridal shower for me that was perfect. We went to dinner at a great Mexican Restaurant and amazing dessert at another restaurant and played a few games. Apparently I don't know Chris as well as I thought-according to the ten pieces of the watermelon Bubblicious gum that I had to stuff in my mouth :) But seriously-the most played song in Chris's iTunes? Anyway, Christmas in Vegas was great. However, being the world traveler that I have become, after flying in from Vegas my mom, sister, and I left that same night to head to Spokane. The Gonzaga Women's basketball team was playing Tennesses the next day and my mom bought GU season tickets so we could watch Pat Summit coach. The trip was long for sure but mom was definitely in heaven. The day after the game we drove back to Billings and I am definitely glad to finally be home.

So, training...while in Vegas I ran in the mornings every other day but missed a couple days due to travel and the GU game. Now that I have been home I've been to the gym every day to build up my cardio and training officially starts tomorrow. I am very excited! Today my mom and I went shopping and I got 2 new swimsuits, swim cap, goggles, and a heart monitor. I am ready to go! The heart monitor is really cool. The main reason I bought it was to be sure I am working out within my aerobic heart rate zone. If I am working out too hard or not hard enough an alarm goes off to tell me. Pretty cool. *14 Weeks-Here we go!*

Week 1 Training:

Monday-Swim 1000 yds, bike 45 min.
Tuesday-Swim 1250 yds, run 20 min.
Wednesday-Bike 30 min.
Thursday-Swim 1000 yds, run 30 min.
Friday-off
Saturday-Run 35 min.
Sunday-Bike 45 min.