Ironman Canada 2012

So I registered for an Ironman today.

I have wanted to do an Ironman since 2006 when I did my first triathlon, The Mooseman Triathlon. I just love the culture of triathlon and have been so fortunate to meet, through Team In Training, amazing people in Denver who have inspired me to want to be better, fast, and stronger.

For those of you who aren't familiar with the Ironman distance, it is a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and then 26.2 mile run. That's right folks, after you swim and bike you run a marathon. Why do I want to do this to my body you might ask, well, I guess I may have masochistic tendencies. But seriously....I just want to have the experience of this ultra endurance sport and push my body and mind to the limit. Plus, the IM is in Penticton, BC which I hear is absolutely gorgeous. There are a couple friends who will be training for this race who live in Denver, including my coach Mary Carey, and I am so excited and fortunate to have this support system.

Ironman Canada 2012, HERE I COME!!!! Only 362 days away.

Training Week 1-DONE!

Hello All!

This post is also on my TNT page but I also wanted to post it here just in case people didn't want to click on my fancy link!

Week 1 of training for the Nation's Triathlon is complete and I feel pretty good considering I only had 1 week off between my marathon and beginning tri training. I think breaking it up with swimming and biking certainly helps!

Monday, I did some P90X yoga for some stretching and core work. It felt good but I definitely had times in the workout where I had to just sit there and look at the TV and think, "there is no way I can do that!"

Tuesday was our first track practice at South High School in Denver. Let's just say I did NO speedwork in marathon training, okay, I haven't done it for years, so needless to say, it was a rude awakening. We practiced with some folks from the Tri Club and they were really FAST. Something to definitely aspire to!

Coach Charley had us warm up with plyometrics and I was thinking to myself, "how am I going to run when my legs are already tired from all these lunges and dynamic form exercises." Luckely, my legs held up (although, BURNING) and the workout went well. We did 800s and 400s and Coach Charley wanted the new Fall Team to do one less set then everyone else. My pace group and I were debating doing one more but Coach Charley said no. I think that he doesn't want us to do too much too quickly. Okay, one less set, I GUESS I can do that. :-) Seriously though, I will take it when I can. I have a feeling that there will not be many more opportunities to cut a workout a little short because we are "new."

I loved the track workout and it took me back to high school with Coach Frasier and I left feeling tired but awesome.

Wednesday was our first swim practice at Arapahoe Community College. I went after work to Swim n Things for one of my most favorite activities-SWIMSUIT FITTING!!!! (sarcasm). After trying on many suits and regets of the bread pudding I had the night before, I found a reversible suit. Who knew?! It's like buying 2 suits! I also picked up some sweet swim fins which make me go much faster in the water. Perhaps the United States Triathlon Association will make an exception and allow me to compete with the fins. Come on USTA, PLEASE!!!

When practice began, I had difficulty with my very fashionable swim cap. I had to look around to see if I was putting it on correctly. Ladies, I think we will see the swim cap on the runways come fall. Hehe! We met one of our other Coaches, Justin who quickly and systematically dismanted my swim stroke. Remember the key you may have learned back in the day? Yeah, it's obsolete now. I have to relearn everything!

We spent most of the practice focusing on form and balance which was most definitley needed and Coach Justin said he was pleased with our overall skill level as a group. What I think he was nicely saying was he was glad he didn't have to jump in and rescue anyone.

I have much work to do on my swim stroke and fitness in the water. Can't wait to continue to get my feet wet, literally!

Saturday was a running workout on the Cherry Creek Trail in which I have fond memories of pounding with my running shoes for the past 4 months. We met at LLS offices and then headed out. We split into 2 groups and the Fall Team focused on running form. Coach Charley said, "some of you are turning your toes out when your'e running." I knew instantly he was talking about me. I will try to change the shape of my hips, Coach Charley, but I can't make any promises!

Sunday I went to the gym for a bike ride because my bike is not yet road ready. Oh the seat pain, I have missed you so! I rode for an hour with random hills programmed in and rode 22 miles. Not bad, but again, I have a ton of work to do and riding a stationary bike is nowhere near riding a real bike dealing with wind, etc. I have not been on my bike for 5 years, I am a little anxious for our group ride next saturday. Thank goodness there will be Coaches there when I can't remember how to shift gears correctly.

So week 1 is DONE, bring on week 2!

GO TEAM!!!!

Amanda

Team in Training

Cancer SUCKS! This is why I have decided to join Team in Training or TNT for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS). The mission of this wonderful society is, "cure leukemia, lymphoma, hodgkin's disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life for patients and their families."

Team in Training is the largest charity endurance sports training program in the world. Since 1988, more than 440,000 volunteer participants have helped raise more than 1 billion dollars! I am so excited to be a part of this wonderful organization and will be fundraising over the next several months to meet my personal fundraising goal of $4000! This is a big challenge, I known, but not nearly as big as the challenge the patients affected with blood cancer face everyday. I will also be training all summer and competing in The Nation's Triathlon in DC on September 11, 2011. This race is an olympic distance which is a 1.5K swim in the Potomac River, 40K bike course through DC and a 10K run through Washington, DC's historical landmarks. I am so excited for the challenge!

I will be fundraising, training and competing in the memory of Kyra Meyer who is the granddaughter of special friends, Chuck and Dicksie Meyer. Unfortunately, Kyra passed away at the tender age of 16 from a lifelong battle with Leukemia. Kyra and the Meyer family were very involved with LLS before her passing and I am so honored to train and contribute my time to fundraise to find a cure for these blood cancers.

This is such an amazing cause and feel so fortunate to be a part of this wonderful organization. You will be hearing from me over the next couple months about my fundraising and training progress.

Please visit my online fundraising page and learn more about TNT and LLS.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to two amazing women! I hope I can be half as good a mother as you some day!

Photos by Megan Newton Photography

Feliz Cumpleanos, Matt!

"With every rising of the sun, think of your life as just begun..."

-Anonymous

Happy Birthday, Matt. I love you very much.

The Colorado Marathon

So.....to make a long story short, the marathon was AWESOME!!!

I woke up very early and jumped on a bus which took me up Poudre Canyon in Fort Collins. A bugler played The Star Spangled Banner, then we were off! The weather was perfect, 30-40 degrees and around 50 at the finish. The course was so beautiful and quiet.

My goal when I began the race was to attempt to keep a 9:30 pace and try to save something for the last 6 miles that I knew were going to be tough. There was a 3 mile hill between mile 17 and 20 that slowed me down a little but ultimately, my strategy worked and I completed the race feeling strong and great. My official time was 4:28 which is a personal record and 46 minutes faster than my first marathon.

Pre-race at the hotel

I knew I would see Matt and my friends, Craig and Alice, around mile 16 so I was really looking forward to that when I was running. I kept telling myself, 3 more miles until...1 more mile until... I actually saw them around mile 19 and it was all I needed to compete the uphill trek and get to the finish line.

My reaction when I saw Matt, Koufax, Alice and Craig. So happy!

It tastes good!

Court family, minus Wendall

Victory Kisses!

Thank you to everyone for the support during my training and leading up to the race. Extra props go to Craig and Alice who made the trek to Fort Collins to support me. Of course, a big thank you goes to Matt who dealt with my nerves the days before and knew just how to make me feel better.

I loved this race and I can't wait to do it again.

Cookies and Cream Cupcakes

Matt has to bring a treat to one of his classes tomorrow so he decided to bake these cupcakes (thanks Michele for blogging about Annie's Eats). Matt was really cute, he was so nervous that they wouldn't turn out well but they DID! Holy YUMMY.

I Love the Dog Park

So....

My husband is amazing. That is all.

Sunshine State

What's New.

I've been keeping myself busy and life is pretty awesome. Running is going well. I've been feeling good, still motivated and focused. I will head out to run 13 later today when I can peel my butt off the couch. It is a beautiful day and I'm really looking forward to it considering my 12 last week was run on the ice and snow so I'm excited about being able to increase my pace without fear of falling down.

I am headed to Florida this week for a wound care and edema class. I'm pretty excited to go to Tampa, although the class goes until 6pm everyday so I'm not sure if I will have much of a chance to enjoy the beautiful Florida sunshine. Really, I'm just excited to be among the palm trees. Although I'm excited for the trip, I'm going to miss my boys like crazy but I'm sure they will hold down the fort just fine without me.

Matt and I enjoyed a fantastic dinner this weekend at Root Down. We had amazing service and the food was incredible. We had a lovely view of the downtown skyline and it was just perfect.

I took this photo with Matt's iphone.

The dogs are doing well. Koufax has graduated to sleeping in the room with us. He has not perfected the art of sleeping in though. He wakes me up with a kiss every morning around 6:30, he is so dang cute!

Matt is also doing well, he has been very busy with his civil rights case and is conducting his first deposition this week. Good luck, Matt!

Matt and I have finished all 6 seasons of LOST. I really loved the show even though there were many unanswered questions. I want to start from the beginning and rewatch the entire series again but Matt wants to watch The Wire instead. I'm fine with that, I heard it's a great show.

I took Stacy's maternity photos last week, it was really fun and a great learning experience. I actually got an email from a woman who wants to hire me for her maternity photos so it looks like my business is slowly but surely taking off!

I will leave you with some motivational mantras you can recite to yourself when you are running and things get tough. Matt will laugh at me when he reads this but a few of these really help me when I'm digging deep.

• Run Fierce, Think Speed
• Stride Strong, Feel Power
• Stride Strong, Think Speed
• Run Fast, Think Light
• This is how you get stronger
• Stay focused, just relax
• Think forward
• Deep Breath, Keep Moving

Gibbs Maternity Shoot

Stacy and Beau are having a baby! Baby Taylor is due March 16th, I can't wait to meet her! Beau and Stacy are a gorgeous and fun couple and I learned so much from the shoot. Thanks Beau and Stacy!