Setback

Monday in physical therapy I was cleared to run for 10 minutes at a ten minute mile pace - on the treadmill of course. We agreed that it would be ok to spin the same day because I have not had any adverse affects from spinning recently. So, I hauled booty to the YMCA, battling Jazz Fest traffic in order to get there early enough to fit in the 10 minute run. I hopped on the treadmill and did my run. It was a little tough, but not painful. I was pretty proud of myself because I didn't feel as though I had been limping too much. My hip flexor and ankle were not in pain either. After my run, I raced downstairs and hopped on my spin bike. I made it just in time for class and had an awesome class. Unfortunately, that was the last time I felt awesome for about 48 hours. I will admit that I didn't stretch properly after class due to my desire to get to the Jazz Fest quickly. However, by 10 pm, my knee had swelled up and I had lost the ability to straighten my leg as much as I have been in recent days. I was in a fair amount of pain and actually opted to head home from the Jazz Fest early. I tied an ice pack to my knee and sent myself to bed. The next day? Still in pain and ended up icing it at work. Of course in order to get ice, I had to also take a 15 minute lecture from the school nurse about overdoing it. So I have learned my lesson: No running and spinning yet. I have to admit that I am getting a bit nervous. I have a 5k on the 4th of July that I really want to run and of course the Boilermaker is less than a month away now. I am confident that I can complete the 5k, but the Boilermaker is beginning to look like a no-go. Hopefully this was just a setback before the great leap forward. . . We will see.

Riding By Myself.

I did my first long-ish ride by myself since my injury. . . I had a GREAT time! I had a meeting down at Camp Stella Maris, so I decided to ride around Consesus Lake. The ride is almost 19 miles long and is pretty flat. West Lake Road has a couple of wee hills, but nothing too challenging in comparison to what I was doing last year at this time.
I drove down to the lake, suited up in one of my awesome cycling skirts and took off. This was actually the first time I rode on the roads with my iPod too. Yes, I know it is a bit unsafe and generally not recommended, but I needed the pacing and let's face it: I live for music!
This ride was awesome! Did I mention that yet? Honestly, I really enjoyed the ride. I kept my cadence between 85-95, mostly 90-95. My average speed was 16.6 mph and I never got below 9 mph. Considering all I have been through since February, and the fact that I still can't straighten my leg. . . I am SO proud of myself! I made it around the lake in 1:07, without anyone to push me. I am really starting to be confident that I can complete a half iron next year. Who knows? Maybe I will be doing the Ironman Lake Placid in 2011 instead of 2012!

Pittsford Tri 2009

Well, a year ago I pictured this post looking a bit different. Last year, I thought I would be posting a victorious PR for this race. Well, I can say that I did PR the swim, which of course was the only part of the race I completed! However, Team Shea, aka Injured & Sick, did OK. I completed the swim in 6:06 (,which includes a run from the pool down the stairs to Thornell Farm Park!) and I am pretty happy with this time. I got out of the pool frustrated because I let head games beat me. I realized as I got into the pool that I forgot to use my asthma inhaler. Of course this time last year I did not know I had asthma, but it still got in my head a bit and I did not breathe as well as I typically do. Joel was sucking down Vicks prior to the race and definitely tasted it a bit on the bike and run. Considering the fact that he is on antibiotics, he did awesome. Next year we promised to both complete the race on our own and do even better. My father did fantastic, taking first in his age group! Maybe when I hit sixty, I can start placing for my age group too! That being said, he is in incredible shape and beat his time from last year by 4 minutes and change.
I will say this, I was up before my alarm at 5 AM this morning. I am not a morning person, but I just can't help it - I get those race day jitters and have to start moving! As I was driving into the Mendon High School parking lot, I thought of how much my life has changed in just one year. A year ago this weekend, I was embarking on my second tri (Keuka) and my first true 100% outdoor tri. I had only completed four previous races. I didn't know I would fall in love with the multi-sport lifestyle, but WOW! It really hit me this morning - I really love this lifestyle and feel like a kid who has been grounded. I know what I want to spend my free time doing (training & racing) and am counting the days until I am off restriction and can do it unrestrained! Race mornings are like Christmas morning for me! I am excited, a bit trepidatious, and exhilarated all rolled into one.