Pretty sure I could live on taco stand tacos - Austin Marathon 2/20/2011 Part I

First of all... I LOVE AUSTIN! This was the second time I had ever been there, but in all fairness I don't really remember the first time. It was a long time ago and I think it was only a quick overnight and there was a lot of drinking involved. Different kind of trip.

This vacation was EXACTLY what I needed THREE days with Mama Marie my BFF from Madison. It was like a little piece of home. We tooled around and were on the same page the whole trip. We wanted to see and do the same things... like rock the local co-op for big salad, sushi and kombucha.

 Yummy Co-Op salad.

 Locally brewed Kombucha... and it was the best I've had! Love it.

She just gets me. We both wanted to walk everywhere, use public transportation, visit the same little grocer/coffee shop EVERY SINGLE DAY and eat tacos and drink margaritas. Nothing says BFF like not even needing to compromise once. We walked all over Austin on Saturday, did the race on Sunday then walked all over again on Sunday just chatting away about life.

Some Austin sites...

 This happens to be a Crepe stand, but there were TACO stands everywhere. 

I forgot to take a pic of the stand where we got the BEST TACO in Austin.

 A cute little dog park right by the river.

 We had to stop by Mellow Johnny's Bike shop.

 I was told that this path was 10 miles. HEAVEN! Where do I sign my lease in this awesome town?

 A super cute hotel right on Congress in the heart of a really cool shopping area. 

Ironically called San Jose Hotel.

Check out this cool pedestrian bridge built a bit lower than the driving bridge.

Austin is so accessible. There are wonderful walking paths and side walks everywhere. The public transportation is stellar... $1 to get almost anywhere and the bus drivers were crazy nice and patient with our 'not from hereness'.

I think that when you sign a lease or buy a house in Austin they give you a card from the local tattoo parlor and tell you you have 30 days to get your first tattoo. And you all know I'm down with that! :)

The expo was huge and they did a pretty good job of hitting their 'green' goal. Our packets weren't stuffed full of GARBAGE that I end up just throwing away immediately.

After the expo we tooled around some more then met my parents, aunt and two cousins for some dinner and headed back to the hotel to get our stuff together and get to bed early.... Thanks to Trakkers, Avia, SBR TriSlide and First Endurance for your support of my race.... more to come on all of that tomorrow!

USAT Youth Development Camp in the PNW!

Do you know any Youth Athletes that would be interested in going to a Junior Skills Development Camp put on by the USAT and coached by Heather and Trevor Wurtele? This is an amazing opportunity and there are scholarships available. You don't have to be in the PNW, but PNW kids will get preference for the scholarships!

Check out THIS LINK for all the details and please pass this info on to anyone you may know that would be interested. It's indeed going to be epic.

My teammie Alex Endo is on the board of USAT for the Pacific Northwest Region so if you have any questions shoot them my way and I'll get you the 411!

The great shoe experiment

Shoes... running shoes. I spend a lot of coin on running shoes. And lately I've been crazy nutso over the whole deal! (seriously over the top. I have purchased and returned THREE pair now.) My current shoes were purchased in APRIL of 2010. To say they need replaced is a vast understatement and I've known they needed replaced, by my cheap ass self has been waiting to get my Avias ..... and I backed myself into a corner.

Okay to be fair I did go out and buy a pair of shoes a while ago, but when I did my test run in them they were awful! AWFUL. So here is the shoe saga (my life is extremely exciting you see) with my little 'experiment' at the end.

I lose toenails when I run. I get that this is fairly normal, but after my last marathon (Miami 1/31/2010) I lost more than half of them and two were BAD. So I wanted to have my shoes checked out. I had been running in Asics for years... like my whole running career. I had tried some other shoes here and there, but would always return them in favor of the Asics.. I think they were 2010s when I started this journey, but I can't remember. So I waited until we went to Seattle in April because I knew there were some good running stores out there. I explained my situation and the guy put me in Nikes. I was VERY skeptical. I had tried Nikes before with little to no success. And I was a runner... weren't Nikes for like basketball players and gym rats (I can say this bc I am also a gym rat)?

Anyway off I trotted and it took me a while, but I began to like them. Particularly when I had no toe pain and managed to keep all my nails even after longer runs.

Fast forward to the last couple of months. I am again marathon training and now I'm sponsored by Trakkers. I wanted to wait so badly for my new Avias. Time was getting tight so I purchased a pair of Asics (why Asics and not the Nikes I had grown to love? They were cheaper and I knew I would be replacing them w/ Avias. Basically I'm cheap.) I ran in them once and they were like BRICKS. I had become accustomed to the less structure of the Nikes. So the Asics went back and I continued to run in my Nikes. I ordered some Avia Quests from Zappos - too big. They were returned. Back to the Nikes.

Finally I broke down and ordered yet another pair of Avias. This time the Rhythms because it was said that they were more of a neutral shoe than the Quests I had previously ordered.

I did a quick run in these and panicked because they just weren't going to work. They felt like bricks too! (stay with me here) I really wanted to represent our sponsors, but I hadn't received my team shoes yet anyway and I am running a marathon in just over a week. NOT a good time to break in a pair of shoes - YES, I realize this should have been done AT LEAST A month ago. (Do you see the neurosis setting in?)

So off I went to purchase the Nikes. I took my old ones with me this time. OMG!! Any pair of shoes would feel like a brick in comparison to my old blown out Nikes. I didn't realize just how bad it was until I had one OLD shoe and one NEW shoe on. I purchased the Nikes and decided I was going to do a little experiment the next day.

I had a ten mile run on tap and decided I would run the first 5 miles in one pair of shoes then switch for the second 5 miles then choose a winner. Well I screwed myself (Mommy mistake, rolled up to the gym and only had one hour of child watch left. I hadn't originally planned to take a kid, but ...well anyway. It is what it is.)... so I ran for 20 mins in one shoe and 20 mins in the other. Or that was the plan.

I started out in the Avias and all was fine. I mean I felt like I was running in my Danskos, but it was bc I was so accustomed to the NOTHING feel of the Nikes (ya gotta wonder if my aches and pains could be associated w/ the old shoes, eh?). Then I changed into the Nikes. AWFUL. The bottom of my foot immediately lit up with friction and my toes were totally cramped in there. Either my old shoes are SERIOUSLY blow out and even the upper is totally stretched or they changed the design of the shoe. I ran in these about 10 mins before putting the Avias back on.

So there you have it folks. My HIGHLY SCIENTIFIC test. Yes I realize this is very very late in the game and my shoes absolutely will not be broken in for the race..... but I'm doing what I can and I'm super glad that the Avias won out. I love to support the sponsors.

I will give you a full report on the shoe post race. I ordered YET A DIFFERENT pair through the team. The Quest Lite!!! I'll also give you the run down on that pair after I get a chance to test em out.

So two questions for you:
1. can I help break the shoes in by wearing them around. I know walking is different than running and it's not recommended to wear your running shoes around, but wouldn't this help a little in this case?

2. Music or no music? Do you rock the iPod during the marathon???

Austin Marathon is a comin' whether I'm ready or not.

The Marathon is ONE WEEK away!!!!

I got up a little early this a.m. to type up this blog post because life has just been crazy busy and well... here comes Austin. I was going to tell you all that even though my training has been basically crap and that I haven't even run a solid 20 miler I was still going to shoot for Boston.

As with all things I checked my email before I got started because that's what all good addicts do.

And what did I find, but an email from coach from Spain. He was giving me my 'pre-race' pep talk. And in that pep talk there were a lot of really good points:

- "your longest run isn't long enough to kill a Marathon" uh, TRUE!
- "get in a good training day and don't do anything that puts the rest of your season in doubt" - Good advice! (this after he gives me the details of how my marathon should go down - below)
- "You have bigger goals this year, and this is a stepping stone." - Again, TRUE!
-  "Don't try to make up for it during the taper." - okay, FINE! Is he some sort of mind reader?

So this is one reason why I hired a coach. To remind me of these types of things. It's not a good idea for me to take my subpar training and go all out in a race that I KNOW I'm not prepared for.. in FEBRUARY when I have the BIGGEST season of my life ahead of me! This is base building! BASE BUILDING! That's it. I need to go to Austin, see two women I haven't seen in ages, soak up some love and sun, and recharge my batteries to come back to this hell hole.. I mean frozen tundra... I mean to come home to my family with the pep back in my step and the focus back in my training.

Thanks Coach! This will be the first race I enter where my go to reminders are to slow down and stay steady not kill it! :) Good prep for an ironman, no?

So thanks to coach I've changed my tune and am going for the FUN factor (didn't I already decide that this is what it's all about anyway?). Here's the plan:

Take the first 13 miles easy. (zone 2) Then miles 13-20 slow, but they will still feel hard. That sounds good .. no checking my watch obsessively to make sure I'm "on pace" ... no stress... just run. Doesn't that sound glorious?

And one last quote from coach: "go dumb easy for most of it or you will come unglued badly after 20." (this was a good reminder and pretty much sealed the deal.)

I do have to say that I did a little experiment (more to come on that tomorrow) and my hammie/glute started aching by 1.5 miles... ugh. Don't want to make that any worse either.

So there you have it folks. My race just became a training session. I'm down with that. (Well you and I both know there is that tiny little voice in that back of my mind berating me right now for waving the white flag before I even got there, but don't worry the sensible side of me is giving her the finger and one big eye roll right now.)

Rev3 and the Ulman Cancer Fund's Team Fight

WANNA BE AN ACTIVE MEMBER IN THE FIGHT AGAINST CANCER?

Rev3 has partnered with Team Fight!!! Just when I thought this crazy adventure couldn't get any better. Now a way to continue to give back while indulging myself in this crazy world of multisport!


TEAM FIGHT is a motivated group of great people of all ages and abilities training to support young adults and their loved ones affected by cancer.
Why We FIGHT

• We FIGHT because there are over 70,000 young adults diagnosed with cancer each year.
• We FIGHT because survival rates have NOT increased for young adults in over 35 years.
• We FIGHT because we want to raise awareness.
• We FIGHT because we care and want to make a difference.

TEAM FIGHT is a great way to give back to the community while having a great time working out and meeting new people.  There is no greater feeling than working hard to accomplish your goals and have a part in winning the FIGHT against cancer!  This program designed to assist you in raising funds for the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults as you train for endurance events including triathlons and running events.

If you are considering participation in one of the Rev3 events please consider doing it through TEAM FIGHT! I am a long time fundraiser and am totally psyched that we have partnered with the UCF!

Here are the basic details:
Fundraising goals by race distance will be $750 for an Olympic Rev, $1000 for a Half Rev, and $1500 for a Full Rev. Racing for TEAM FIGHT will include a custom TEAM FIGHT tri uniform and/or race jersey.

Athletes that raise $1500 will receive:

§  TEAM FIGHT “In Training” Tech Training Shirt

§  Training plans

§  Personalized on-line fundraising tool and support

§  Water Bottle

§  Registration deducted from fundraising

§  Passionate and Supportive Teammates

§  VIP area at race venue

Athletes that raise $2,500 will receive

§  All  of the Above

§  Exclusive TEAM FIGHT/Rev3 Jacket

§  Individual Recognition at Rev3 Event

The Rev3 Top Fundraiser for the season will receive:

§  All of the Above AND

§  Crystal Award Presentation/Recognition at end of season

§  Entry and accommodations for Rev3 Costa Rica 2012 (Did you see that??? ENTRY AND ACCOMMODATIONS!!!!)

 This is an amazing opportunity. I'm hoping to do some fundraising of my very own...

Sponsor updates and a deal for you!!!

And I continue to be blown away. Not only did we hear of a new sponsor they have offered us a friends and family discount!!!

 All3Sports.com is again an official sponsor of Team Trakkers.  And in addition to that they are extending a discount to our friends and family - to include YOU! So next time you find yourself in need of Tri equipment go to www.all3sports.com and enter this code: GOTRAKKERS for 15% off your entire purchase.  Follow them on Twitter @All3Sportscom.

Rev3 is also in on the friends and family discount action. You can get $10 off your Rev3 registration using this code: Trakkers27.  You'll be prompted to enter as you register on Active.com. If you register for a Rev3 race let me know.. and I'll see you there! To keep up on all things Rev3 please follow on Twitter @Rev3Tri.

Go Trakkers AND all of our awesome awesome sponsors!

Stay Injury Free - Part II The GLUTES, movement prep, prehab, recovery and regeneration

I am 100% geeking out over Jessi Stensland and Core Performance (CP). 100%!! We'll come back to that!

As I dive into this whole 'injury prevention' thing I'm blown away. Maybe blown away isn't the right way to say it. Let's just say that in my years running I've always thought it would be 'nice' to do a strength training program, but always wanted to 'save my legs' for the long run. I was so naive. This quest has created a paradigm shift for me. While the programs I am looking at are not 'strength training' in the sense that I previously thought of it. I thought of it as big weights and leg presses until my legs were noodles. While I think there is definitely a place for that (dependent on your goals) this approach is not what I'm thinking of as I enter into my season. (Wait aren't I knee deep in marathon training?)

I'm talking about movement prep, sustainable strength training to prevent injury (CP calls it Prehab) and recovery. I will get into all of this, but went to delve into some information about your GLUTES!

Now as an endurance athlete you are thinking 'my glutes are rock solid baby!', but I'm here to tell you that they likely aren't. While your Gluteus Maximus might be all well and good those other pesky glutes (gluteus medius and minimus) are likely suffering a bit.

Yea so what?

According to Core Performance (got the book for endurance athletes and would highly recommend you do the same - check the library) "Learning how to use the glutes and the surrounding musculature in the hip cuff will be one of the best things you can do to DECREASE injury potential and improve performance." And let me just BLOW your mind right now. Hold onto your seat! I can't quote this verbatim because I've been devouring everything Jessi and CP, but somewhere along the way someone said... Adding 10 mins of movement prep (etc) to your daily workout WILL benefit you MORE than slogging 10 more minutes out on your run/bike. Basically doing the 10 minutes of movement prep gets you ready to workout, warms the muscles and helps open up joints for proper posture and movement. But if you want to do 10 extra sloppy run/bike minutes as 'warm up' instead and not gain the strength and mobility, but get those MINUTES in ... be my guest. I'll be waiting for you at the finish line of our next race... minus the injuries. Just sayin'!

The glutes should always be the primary muscles that drive lower body movement, but the body will default to the stronger muscles to accomplish this. In most of us our Quads overpower our glutes. You see a lot of people doing squats and lunges at the gym, and while these exercises strengthen the legs their main goal should be to strengthen the glutes FIRST and the legs second. (In order to do this you need to concentrate on firing the glutes - your weight should be distributed evenly on your feet - not in your heels or your forefoot.)

Here is a great video of the proper squat form.


I've always known that the glutes were a powerhouse and I've always ASSUMED that they must just do what they do, but when I did the squat the right way and really focused on what I was doing... wow. What a difference. First I did a regular old squat like I would normally do.. QUADS QUADS QUADS. Hmmm strange. Then I tried the way above and focused on my glutes. What a difference! Then I tried some lunges. Hmm same thing. I guess in the past I thought of these as leg exercises so I didn't give my glutes much thought... just figured a nice side benefit was a nice butt.

Since looking into all of this I have really been concentrating on firing my glutes in every day stuff... walking, crouching down to pick something up, getting out of a chair. Try it. You'll realize you aren't maximizing your glute potential either!

So I haven't come up w/ my final solution to all of this. I'm still just figuring it all out, but I'm starting with the Core Performance stuff (and who knows maybe this is the holy grail for me and is what I will stay with). See the videos below (care of SportSkool) with Jessi Stensland. She talks a bit about how she was athletically when she came to this program and - well - you can see how it all worked out for her. Just watch her run form. WOW!

Warm up


Pre-Hab


Recovery and Regeneration


Did you do the squat? How are your glutes? Try this stuff and report back here how it worked for you. I know Kelly of Team Trakkers has done some of the Movement Prep stuff and is enjoying it's benefits already!

2011... are you really already awesome?

I'm working on my next installment of the "Injury Free" series, but in the mean time...

I am so amazed! You put something out there and it starts to come together. You open the door or window or whatever and things start to happen. I said this year was going to be AWESOME.. and I gotta tell ya at the end of 2010 I was doubtful, but it's all starting to come together!

First and foremost I'm still in awe/denial that I am a part of this Trakkers crew! Things are starting to happen, people are talking, Rev3 is ramping up and I just sit back and wonder how I got on the awesome train w/ this crew!

The pro team has been announced (click here to see video of them introducing themselves) and though obviously I've never met any of these people I've been watching them through the years and can't believe I will be part of it all. (we Trakkers Age Groupers really look up to our faster team mates!!!) And you can come out to the Rev3 race series and race with them ... oh and us age groupers too... though we might not have as much draw!

Hillary Biscay:  2008 Ironman Wisconsin Champion; 15-time top-three Ironman finisher
Courtenay Brown: Danskin Tri & Silverman Half winner; Inside Tri columnist
Kathleen Calkins: 2010 REV3 Cedar Point 3^rd place; Top Amateur Kona 2009
Richie Cunningham: 2x 70.3 Champion; 4x Top-Five 70.3 World Championships
Brian Fleischmann: 1^st World Team Champs; 2x 2^nd place USAT National Champs
Jacqui Gordon: Multiple Ironman and 70.3 Top-Ten finisher
Amanda Lovato: 2010 Pucón 70.3 Champion; Multiple Half Ironman Champion; Multiple Top-Five Ironman finisher
Michael Lovato: 2x Ironman Champion; 3x Top-Ten Kona; 3x National Champion
Chris McDonald: 3x Ironman Champion
Jessica Meyers: 2010 Augusta 70.3 Champ; US National Team; Armed Services Champion
Matt Sheeks: 2010 Duathlon Pro National Champion; 2009 Duathlon AG World Champion

Our sponsorships continue to come together. This part floors me too! I've never been a sponsored athlete and I gotta say it seems a little weird, but I couldn't be more appreciative of the time and effort that goes into it all and of the companies for providing us such wonderful product and service. As time goes by I will be talking about all of the products we use and know that what I say is truly how I feel about the product! Of course, all the companies and products are stellar so... well you know!

So far the line up is as follows

Rev3... have I talked about this race series enough? Click HERE to check out Rev3 radio with Bree Wee TONIGHT Wed 1/26/11 at 8pm Eastern time!
Kestrel Bicylces - I am currently awaiting my 4000 Pro Frame set. Tom will be hard at work putting her together ASAP! oh, is it snowing out. Crap. Okay, but I'll be on her as soon as the weather permits! After all... there is a race on the horizon.
Avia Shoes - my Avi Quest Lites should be here any day now. I can't wait. Mama is in need of some new shoes... BAD! :)
First Endurance - I've been super excited to try First Endurance since I first heard of it last year when I found Team Trakkers. I didn't pull the trigger bc I discovered it after I did my marathon and didn't do so much long stuff and didn't feel justified in purchasing it. I did go out and purchase some Ultragen the other day and OMG that stuff is so good I want to do an epic training session every single day so I can have one! I'm waiting for my EFS and liquid shot to come in.... there will definitely be more reviews on this awesome product!
TYR - if you've ever swum a lap you've likely used these products! We'll be sporting TYR wetsuits this year.. full sleeve or sleeveless that is the question!
SBR Sports/Triswim,Triglide,foggle - I've been using the triswim for a while now and it's fabulous! No chlorine smell and now chlorine itch. The product is smooth and luxurious with a nice fresh scent (nothing overpowering). If you can't even imagine that this is possible than I suggest you check it out ... click HERE and get some samples for your very own post swim spa experience. In addition to having a stellar product this company is run by a fantastic athlete and all around good person. I'm happy to be supporting a small business with good people and good products! Her company philosophy jives with Rev3s main goal of putting the athlete first!

To add to the general AWESOMENESS I've just landed a job with Rev3 as the local Volunteer Coordinator. This does mean that I can't race Quassy, but it also means that I get to be a little bit behind the scenes too! When we were going through the Trakkers process of deciding who was going to be on the team I had posed to Carole that I would love to work with Rev3 regardless of my making the team so when this opportunity came up I jumped on it! See... you put it out there in the universe and it all just finds you!

Plans are getting booked for all of my races and I'm once again blown away at how awesome my husband is. He is totally supportive of all this craziness and is on board to pick up any slack in the home front department.. ie watching kids while I go gallivanting around the country to race and represent Team Trakkers. With out his support NONE of this would be happening! Thanks babe! I love you!

I'm back to rockin on my workouts.. who knew switching to the treadmill would make me feel better? Weird. I'm still trying to find balance with three days straight of teaching spin ... over the weekend without frying my legs for my long run. I have a really hard time dogging it in class.

So all in all 2011 is off to a great start. And great is a gross understatement!

Stay Injury Free - Part I Movement Prep

I've added a goal to the list for 2011... STAY INJURY FREE.

The irony of this being that I'm limping a bit and my hamstring / glute is throbbing a bit as I type this. I think it was a combo of snow shoveling (I AM SO DONE W THIS WEATHER), spinning hard three days in a row and two epic duathlon workouts. On a scale of 1 to 10 it's maybe a 2 or 3, but it's there... EARLY in the season. So I went to see a chiropractor that also does ART (Active Release Techniques). I've been to  number of chiropractors in my life, but this is the first time one has watched me go through a number of range of motion exercises to look for weaknesses. Granted I first saw him the day after my 14mile run/1hour spin/4 mile run workout. When he told me my glutes seemed weak I told him about this workout and he didn't bat an eye so I'm not sure if my glutes are indeed weak or if they were just fatigued.

Prior to this pain and my visit to the chiropractor I had been poking around at Jessi Stensland's website Movement U and a site she seems to participate in and/or just link to a site called Core Performance regarding strengthening the core, form and preparing for movement techniques (instead of stretching pre run or just jumping right in). There is so much information at both of these sites that I quickly found myself overwhelmed.

I was pretty excited when it all came full circle and the chiropractor demonstrated a couple of moves for me to do a couple of times a day (which reminds me that I haven't done them yet, ugh) and they were THE SAME as some of the moves Jessi talked about. It's all coming together.

So - though they honestly bore me to tears - I know that these exercises are important to keep me doing the ones that DON'T bore me to tears. I've reached out to coach for some strength/range of motion stuff and am also looking things up myself... cause I like to do that. Jessi talks a lot about going through the exercises WHILE PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION TO YOUR CORE! Do the exercises, but only to the degree and length that you can maintain proper form.

There is SO MUCH information out there in regards to how to prevent injuries that I decided to do this in a series. Part I will be:

MOVEMENT PREP!

The best resource I have found is the Core Performance site. I did this movement prep for my last two runs and I have to say that I felt it helped a lot. Normally I feel some aches and pains as my body gets warmed up and things really start to jive after about 3 miles. These past two runs I got right to work after having done the movement prep moves at Core Performance. I also felt that doing them kept me thinking about my core and body alignment during the run. They are worth the time!

These moves include:
Marching Glute Bridges
Hip Rotations
Leg overs
Knee Hugs
Reverse Lunges
Knee hug to forward lunges
Drop Lunges
Lateral Squats
Inverted Hamstrings
Heel to Butt

Each of these moves is shown (complete with videos) very well HERE at Core Performance so I won't try to explain them. I would say all told these moves took me about 10 minutes to do in total. If you don't have that kind of time (you really do you just don't think you don't) then I would say pick some to do each time and rotate them for different workouts.

201Ironman

No turning back now folks.... the cat's officially out of the bag. Maybe you already knew this, but I think I've been denying it to myself or just ignoring it until I get through the Austin Marathon. I'm doing the full at Cedar Point. (shhh, I still don't like to talk about it too much because it makes me sick to my stomach. I'm scared out of my mind, but really excited at the same time.)

Being that this is my FIRST full (crap stop staying that it's making me sick) I am looking for all the support I can get. I, of course, have my wonderful Trakkers team mates many of which have done not only the full, but the Cedar Point full, and I just joined a great group of bloggers that are all doing a full in 2011. You can check all of us out at 201Ironman. I just added my profile so if you get over there quick the link will take you straight to my details! :) There are seasoned Ironman athletes and newbies there that are all posting to the site. You can also link to all of our blogs if you need some instant inspiration!

This is one of the things I just love about triathlon... we're like family. We're all in this together helping each other out along the way whether it be motivation on a day you just don't 'feel it' or tips on training/racing/nutrition. Blogging has just made this family ridiculously huge! If you think you can't do a triathlon just look out there at all these blogs. If you still think you can't... email one of us. Open the door. We all want to help you all succeed in your tri dreams. I'm amazed every day at the support and communication I get from complete and total strangers as a result of both my blog and reaching out to other bloggers!

You all have numerous ways to check up on me now.... so do so and make sure I'm staying on target with my #1 goal to HAVE FUN! If it sounds like I'm not having fun.... remind me!

Trigger Point Therapy

I first heard of Trigger Point Therapy on Megan's blog inTraining. Now I've been a user of THE STICK and it was okay, but never really did much for me. I've seen and used that big foam roller thing at the gym, but mostly just on my IT Band. This system takes it to the next level. Not only are the products solid they provide endless amount of information on their WEBSITE and YOUTUBE!

And on top of that I mentioned something about being really sore and wondering if you can overdo the TP Therapy and THEY RESPONDED to my tweet! I was shocked! They reminded me to hydrate properly. Told me that YES you can indeed do too much (uh, Laura, newsflash... all things in MODERATION!) and told me to message them directly if I needed more info. Talk about making me feel special and cared for!

So what's this Trigger Point stuff all about? (Trigger Point people please add anything I missed in the comments below!) It basically brings myofascial release to you at home! Massage, while wonderful, can become quite costly and as endurance athletes (or desk jockeys really) we need a lot of it to keep us moving.

Okay that's nice and I'm all for the frequent massage, but really how's this roller and ball going to get me the nice relaxing state of a massage... uh, well it's not THAT kind of massage. It's the kind of massage that hurts a little (ok a lot), but is functional. You won't be relaxed and you might actually break a sweat and it will make you VERY happy you did it.

Per Wikipedia Myofascial release is a form of soft tissue therapy used to treat somatic dysfunction (the impaired or altered function of bodily structures) and accompanying pain and restriction of motion. This is accomplished by relaxing contracted muscles, increasing circulation, increasing venous and lymphatic drainage, and stimulating the stretch reflex of muscles and overlying fascia.^[1]

By performing the Trigger Point Therapy/Myofascial release you can relieve muscular aches and pains and restore full range of motion!

TP Therapy has a nice CHART on their site showing various trigger points, but I found THIS one that I think is one the coolest sites I've seen in a long time. It's an interactive Trigger Point Map. How cool is that. Have a pain? Find it on the dude and it will show you a close up of that muscle group and show you where you need to perform your TP therapy to relieve the pain... sometimes it's not in the same place as the pain.

I think I may have over done it on the ol' glutes this go round... so I think I'll stick to the shorter sessions daily to continue to release without so much pain. As I am devouring the TP website I just found this:

"When using Trigger Point's Performance tools, three to five minutes of pressure within each muscle group is all that is needed. This method is recommended before and after workouts and races and prior to stretching. Athletes tend to overdo things. That's what gets them into the painful situation in the first place. Moderation is the key."

I love the lower leg release! LOVE! I swear it keeps me out there.

If you have doubts check this out! I did this little test myself the other day and I COULD NOT believe the difference it made in ONE sitting. I have been doing this awhile, but never tested it.



If you haven't used this system you need to get it! I guarantee it will have you feeling better (so long as you subscribe to that whole ALL THINGS IN MODERATION thing!)

Do you roll your legs? Use the stick? Already a devout TP Therapy ball sitter?

What do I want to accomplish with this sport!?

What's my purpose? Ok.. not in life, but here on this blog. Why? Why do I write? Why do I train? Why do I race. I alluded to my questioning my definition of AWESOMENESS for this great year of 2011 in my last post. Originally when I thought of AWESOMENESS I thought about crushing the Boston Goal and achieving my furthest distance at some arbitrarily fast pace. Well, as I've been striving toward the Boston goal I've found that I don't have the drive (my teammie Megan wrote a great post about this) to run FAST. I have the drive to run, but not fast. Not right now. I might come back to it, but right now I feel like my purpose is different than proving to (who?) the world that I'm a speedy runner.

So what exactly is that purpose? What makes me the most proud of my efforts? When others, mom's and otherwise, are inspired by the fact that I just get it done at all. I don't need to be super human... I want other people to see me as a 'regular' person.. a solid middle of the pack age grouper.. who is getting it done in my way. I want YOU to see me and realize that YOU too CAN set those goals (dreams) and find the DRIVE to do it. YOU CAN make the time in YOUR schedule to do it. YOU CAN push your body beyond the point that you once thought you could. Because really... if I can do it so can YOU!!! (Don't get me wrong I won't be slacking!! I'm eat up those hard workouts... I'm just not going to focus and worry about it so much. IT being finish time. )

And that we can ALL do it while having a GREAT TIME!

So have I found my WHY? I haven't drilled down to it all the way yet, but I think it's starting to show me glimpses of itself. I know a portion of that why is YOU! All of you... whether you be team mates, friends or family. I think of all of you during the long training sessions. I think of all of you when I race. And I hope to inspire you to dig deep within yourselves to find those dreams and the desire and to start putting one foot in front of the other to GO FOR IT! All the way. We get one life, one chance... let's do it!

What's your WHY?

One last thing.. I would be remiss if I didn't share the hilarity of THIS post with you. Read it.. you will LAUGH OUT LOUD!

2011 ... ?

2011 is really throwing me for a loop. I've designated it as the year of AWESOMENESS. Okay... what EXACTLY does that mean for me? Well today I figured that out during my run.

AWESOMENESS = FUN!

I recently saw a quote on a blog (that I've been trying desperately to find so I can link to it, but I can't find it... if you read this please comment below so I can link to you!!) that really resonated with me. Found HIM!

"If you aren't having fun, you aren't doing it right!"

I've also been digging deep to find my WHY? around ... well a lot of things, but we'll focus on my goal to qualify for Boston for now.

Today during my (non-stellar) run I was really thinking about this Boston Qualifying thing and the state of my life/running. Why do I want to try to qualify for Boston? Where did this goal come from? It carried me last year, but this year I'm not really feeling it. So where did this come from? I used to be perfectly happy just running - working on improving for sure, but mostly enjoying it. Well, I met some uber athletes... they had all qualified for Boston. So I guess I grabbed onto them and figured - if they could to it, I could do it. Not only could I, but I SHOULD!!! Why? Cause it gives me street cred w/ running friends? What's that all about!? So as I plodded along on my run trying to jack my heart rate up to 175bpm on hills (where my legs crashed way before I got anywhere near hitting 175) I realized I had my ladder up the wrong tree. At least this year! This year I'm not 'in the mood' to work hard in that manner.

So what does all this mean? It means I could give a rip if I qualify for Boston. I have no real desire to run Boston and I need to follow my own goals. So I'm still running Austin, but my approach has changed. What is it that I love about running... just the running. The mental break I get from it the feeling of having given a big physical effort. I can do this w/o a time goal.

When I trained for a half ironman I went into it w/ the goal of finishing and tackling this long distance I had never done. Then I had a conversation with my Brother in Law (who was also doing the race) about how long I thought it would take me. I literally had no idea. Then I started looking into it, then I got caught up in it, then I was all consumed by it and the process wasn't fun anymore. I almost dropped out of the race (which is ironic because I DNFd it due to bike issues). I don't want to walk down that road this year. I want to enjoy the process.

So what does AWESOMENESS mean?

1. FUN (first and foremost) w/ triathlon and all else in my life.
2. Completing the LONGEST distance I have ever done - twice!
3. Epic adventures and road trips with my Trakkers teammies and friends.

So there you have it folks. While this isn't my 'resolution' post.. it's the beginning of things coming together in my mind. I've been all over the map lately and have been thinking about this post quite a bit. I had something all written up... to only be trashed. There are things in my life beyond triathlon that I need to sort through. The FUN aspect definitely translates to those aspects of my life, but I need to nail down my thoughts and ideas around what I want to accomplish and/or focus on in the other areas.

So more to come. Any revelations for you this new year?

2010 wasn't exactly EPIC.

I'm not sure if it's the start of November and Tom being out of town then the sickies or what, but I've just been in a total funk lately. Happy freakin' holidays eh? As I look back at year end for the past couple of years I'm starting to think that this time of year is just a kind of normal lull for me. I should just accept it and not fight it so much. We aren't really ones to pack a lot of stuff in over the holidays so I don't think it's holiday stress or anything like that. It's probably more about a lack of schedule... things are crazy and I'm with kids a lot more.

I normally enter the new year rejuvenated and excited by the perceived clean slate. I know that Jan 1st is really just another day, but I love the energy that people bring to a new year. I love the feeling of being able to look back on the previous year and then leave it behind and move on to the new year. I'm trying to reflect on 2010, but coming up empty handed... or minded. I looked back at some of my old posts and noticed that in my last post of 2009 I said that 2010 was going to be Epic. While 2010 was 'fine' I certainly would not classify it as 'EPIC'. I've seen a lot of blog posts of people doing pictures through the year. I loved this idea and felt I needed it to reflect on the things I have accomplished this year..... so here goes!

2010 in photos:

Miami Marathon. A near Boston, but not quite. A fabulous PR and a WONDERFUL weekend with friends that I won't soon forget.

Danbury Half. Though I feel it is barely worth mentioning .. it was LESS than epic. But I got out there regardless of the fact that I wasn't really 'feeling' it!

P90X. I vowed to start a strength training program and stick to it. I purchased P90X, took some time off running b/c I was burnt out and lifted some weights. I'm not sure I got the exact results I wanted, but I put on some muscle that's for sure. Now I definitely love the weights... but am back to more S,B,R and less weights. For now. I'll get it to all come together.

The Northface Challenge. I actually listened to my body and mind and went from the half to the 10k. I'm glad I changed. I enjoyed the run... while I think I would have hated it had I almost doubled the distance. The drive out and wait to start were less than ideal (though they would have been better if I had had some friends along for the ride), but all in all I'm glad I did the race. Will it be on the schedule in 2011? Nope.

Trip to Seattle. We made a much overdue trip to Seattle and the sense of relief/home that we both felt as we drove into that city was palpable. A reaffirmation of where we feel we 'belong' was good. Seeing family and friends was the icing on the cake!

Pat Griskus Tri. I got back to it. First tri in over a year and it felt good to be back in the game. Despite some racing mistakes! (no wetsuit.. really? What was I thinking?) The finish was great fun though. A little throw down with another athlete. Complete with big smiles and pats on the back.

Danbury HV Tri. Sweet... got TWO races in. ha And brought along a newbie to do her first tri. Swim still sucked, but I managed a first place in my age group. Don't ask how many people were in my AG. I don't know the actual number, but I know it wasn't a lot.

John Hirsch. I hired a coach. Wowza! This better help w/ the AWESOME factor for 2011. I don't want to be sitting here on Jan 1st 2012 saying, "I said 2011 was going to be AWESOME, but it just wasn't!" No pressure COACH!!! I know it's on ME to make it AWESOME!

Spinning. I got a jump start on goals for 2011 and put my spinning cert to use and actually got a JOB (well can I really call it a job... I haven't had one in so long that I'm not sure.)

Trakkers. Okay the close of the year (despite my funk) was pretty EPIC. I had applied to Team Trakkers and found out in early December that I was ON THE TEAM! I'm guessing this will help with the Awesome factor of 2011.

I'm psyched that it's the new year! Since I love it, but I'm still working through what the year is going to look like. I know what I'm doing for races I will be AT, but am not 100% on the distances I will be racing... which really isn't a big deal since I'm focused on Marathon training right now. A 2011 post is forthcoming... working out the details yet.

Happy 2011 to all my bloggy friends. I'm sorry I've been absent. What are you up to in 2011? What's your NUMBER ONE goal this year?

Pat Griskus finish

I'm still feeling like death warmed over and the lack of exercise (taking my rest week like a good little girl) is making me crabby and more tired.

I just got one of those emails from a race to order photos. I went through them and was reminded of the finish at the Pat Griskus Sprint. I was coming into the race shoot and a guy came up behind me and attempted to pass and I was NOT going to let that happen. He didn't realize at first that I was trying to stay with him.... the result was some funny pictures and we had a good laugh about it at the finish.

This is one of the reasons I love this sport so much. So fun to meet new people out there. You can read my race report HERE.

This first shot is just me ... I wish they had the other guy in it too. I'm laughing at myself and the effort I was putting out.

And this one is he and I after we crossed. Apparently the sun came out the moment we crossed that line.

I got a good laugh out of this and wanted to share some high notes after all my belly aching about my state of health (which I realize is really not that bad... I have a head cold, yes I feel like ass, but it will go away)....

Struggling!

Today I struggled through a 14 mile run. I'm supposed to be entering true marathon training. Thank God I'm base building right now and not working on speed yet. I've been sick (as I know I've mentioned). It's been hanging around for weeks. I noticed while looking at my training log that I was mentioning feeling 'something coming on' over a MONTH ago. Seriously! Then the family got sick while I was still fighting the bug. It came to head and I really felt like garbage and now it's lingering. I'll start to feel like maybe I'm getting my groove back and then I feel crappy again. My energy is 'okay'... mentally I'm shot! This is not boding well for my attempt at a BQ. I know I've got some time, but time is going by quickly. I'm almost 2 months away from race day. I'm going to have to start doing tempo work and I'm worried that I'm not going to be able to bring my A game. Shit I feel like the best I've got right now is my C game. I'm running slower now than I've run in years.

I'm trying really hard not to freak out!

Not only am I feeling weak in my training efforts my normal daily tasks/routine has me feeling overwhelmed. I still feel like I'm just peeking out of the rabbit hole... not quite coming out. I feel socially stunted. This is not like me. I'm a social person, but I'm struggling just to reach out to people in ways that I used to do easily.

None of this is causing us to have a joyful holiday. It's all just like regular day... or not even as good as a regular day. These things happen right. I'm so ready for a break. A day where I can sleep in (which I'll probably never do.. I'm not a good sleeper inner) then just laze around and not worry about the state of my house, the growing laundry pile, the xmas stuff that is looming, what to do w/ the kids during the cold rainy days.... blah blah blah... I'm whining. I know I've got it good. I have a roof over my head, we have expendable income to pursue things we enjoy (ie marathons/triathlons), my kids are fairly good... NORMAL 4 year olds, my husband is loving and understanding. I know I should just be happy to have all these things....

Okay I'm really sounding pathetic now. Just wanted all my bloggy friends to know I'm still here. I'm still checking in on you... I'm just feeling lazy and slow and like a hermit. It will all come together again and I'll be 'normal'... RIGHT!

And I want everyone to know it's not all sunshine and roses, speedy runs and great recovery. We all have our slumps. I'm right smack dab in the middle of one... I'll see you on the other side!

PS. I couldn't really handle anymore echinachea or Vit C.. just so you know I'm hitting all the usuals to try to get the funk out! Maybe I should just start drinking heavily. Surely this funk couldn't exist in that environment right? :D

What does it all mean?

A few people have asked what does it mean.. this Trakkers thing?

It means a couple of things.

1. Team mates: I get to be part of an amazing team of athletes! We come from all kinds of backgrounds and locations. We're bloggers, we're triathletes, we're whitty, funny and talented and are quickly becoming friends. Since we got the news the emails have been a flyin'. Plans are being made and we're already playing the games that teammates play. It's great fun already. (I have linked to each and every teammates blog on the right side bar so you can check out these crazy freaks, er, rockin' athletes.)

2. Sponsors: We will be supported by some amazing sponsors. So far we are on board with Kestrel Bikes, Avia Shoes (the official footwear sponsor of the USAT) and SBR (triswim, triglide, foggle). This is all new to me and I find it to be simply amazing. I'm honored to be able to represent great brands. Carole (aka Mama Bear-totally saying I know her... cause yea, I'm cool. I KNOW her. Totally. No, really I do.) along w/ Teammate Michael Lovato (yea I'm totally going to pretend I KNOW him.. cause really I don't) are kicking butt on other great sponsors.

3. Rev3. Check out my 2011 race schedule. I'm all up on the Rev3 Series. We are in cahoots w/ Rev3 and we are PROUD to be representing them as a race brand. You wanna have a high end triathlon experience? Pony up to a Rev3 start line and see what all the talk is about!

This is an amazing opportunity I have been offered and I am humbled by my teammates. They are amazing and supportive and I don't take the chance to be part of the team lightly. I plan to represent them (and our sponsors) to the best of my ability.

So come along for the ride. I promise it's going to be wild and crazy with a lot of highs, lows and A LOT OF FIRSTS!!!! FIRST HALF (I can't DNF all of them can I) and maybe (probably) first FULL at Cedar Point! (there's my big secret. I told myself that if I made the team I would do the FULL... well, I don't want to be a liar and really there is no time like the present right!?)

2011s Awesomeness is already in full effect!

Perhaps you already noticed the little tweak to the blog design? Sportin' a new color!!!

And the AWESOMENESS begins! I am excited to announce that I will be a member of Team TRAKKERS in 2011! Thank you to everyone who sent me such wonderful words of excitement and encouragement! I made some 'promises' to myself IF I made it. Uh, in hindsight I think these 'promises' I made were more to 'let me down easy' if I didn't make the team. So now it's go time and I have some things to figure out! :)

This makes my race season pretty easy! I would absolutely LOVE to do each and every Rev3 race, but reality is likely to slap me in the face as I sit down and review both calendar and budget! :) The for sure races:

June 4&5 Quassy - duh
July 10th Portland, OR (long trip to see family)
Sept 11 Cedar Point, OH (a vaca with the family - Gma and Papa included)

The others are ones I would LOVE to do and WILL do if the calendar and budget align.

May 15th Knoxville, TN
Oct 8th/9th Anderson, SC (right next door to Clemson University)
Feb 19th&20th 2012 Costa Rica (ok this one is a total pipe dream, but it is the year of awesomeness so who knows)

No matter how it all boils down it's going to be an awesome year. Now if I can just get my body free of this gunk so I can get to work on my first race as a member of Team Trakkers! Austin Marathon 2/20!!!!

Sponsors are still being worked out, but one we know about is Kestrel Bikes. So guess what this mama is getting for Christmas/Birthday/Anniversary/Valentine's... you get the idea... a fancy new tri bike!!! Yeah me. There is a rumor out there that there will be a pretty little Trakkers number that looks a little something like this:

Stop drooling. She's pretty ain't she!? We'll see if there will be a green one... if there isn't there are blue, yellow and red to chose from. All totally doable! :)

Poking my head out of the rabbit hole!

I feel like I went underground for a while. I haven't really been blogging, tweeting or Facebooking a whole lot. I haven't really been dealing with people in the real world too much either. I've been lurking a bit here and there, but my google reader is all kinds of balled up right now. Lot's of catching up to do.

The short story is that Tom was gone... I hung in there okay through that. We're all pretty used to that deal by now. Then he came back and the anticipation of his return always sets me up for a huge face plant! This time it was worse than other times. Not only was he jet lagged he was SICK. In bed for four days sick sick. While I am not a nurturing or sympathetic person by nature it was especially hard for me to keep keeping on for those 4 days. I was all ready to let my guard down and share the parenting responsibilities. I was already fighting a cold (thanks kids) myself and feeling rather crummy, but Tom was OUT! In bed! Jetlag + flu (he thinks) = completely SHITTY! So the kids and took off and were out of the house for most of those 4 days in efforts to give Tom a chance to rest and to keep the healthy ones healthy. All looked well. Tom started getting out of bed and then WHAM! Both kids got a fever. Happy Thanksgiving everyone... no one had an appetite and we did a lot of sitting around the house. I continued to stay away from this flu... then the kids were up and at em and the holiday was over. Time for Tom to return to work. Wouldn't ya know it... my turn. Thank God I didn't have whatever it was they had, but I was sick.. Not uberfeverish and in bed for four days sick, but weak, sore, coughing, sore throat head floating sick.

I didn't want to do or see anyone... not really an option. Couldn't stay in bed. So I coped the best I could worked through the basic needs of two 4 year olds and we rocked the house some more. I hate to stay in the house all day.... every day... and for weeks on end. Just shoot me! Even if I'm sick. Obviously no workouts are happening during this time... double shoot me!

I started to get bored, lonely and agitated on top of the sick. Man I was a peach of a person to be around let me tell you. Needless to say the holidays aren't so joyful around these parts. The kids are crabby bc they were sick and have now been stuck in the house way too much. I'm crabby for pretty much the exact same reasons. Joy joy joy!

It's strange on one hand I've been lonely and on the other hand people have just plain been irritating me! Didn't really want to deal w/ anyone or anything..... BUT....

I think the veil has finally started to lift. After a sub-par run yesterday I think the cobwebs are getting worked out of my head. I'm still coughing and kinda phlegmy, but my head is getting right. That right there is all I need... for my head to be right. My energy to return and to be able to run (and enjoy it).

I'm psyched to head back to the pool tonight... though I'm trying to keep my expectations for that workout in check. Knowing that taking over a WEEK off swimming is certainly not going to help my technique or endurance. It's about just getting started back at it again.

Marathon training officially started this week... first run done, but not a great confidence booster. Coach assures me that all is well and we have plenty (uh, 11 weeks) of time!! Trust grasshopper, trust! You have nothing if you don't have trust. So coach, I trust you! And I only had to force myself a little bit to say that.

REV3 Portland!

I am totally jazzed that REV3 is headed to Portland! If anyone wants to know where they can find me on July 10th, 2011... this is it! We are due for a trip to visit family (BIL and SIL are in Portland and my MIL and FIL just moved to Brookings, OR) and this gives us (er, me) even MORE reason to get out there.. to put a date on the trip and make it happen. I know there are quite few PNWers reading this blog... you in? Come on... top of the line treatment at REV3!!! Plenty of time to train and well, I'll be there!

I ordered a pair of Avia Running shoes to give them a test drive. They appeared on my doorstep today. Unfortunately I can't really run in them right now because I'm sick as a dog... but I wore them around a bit and they are nice. A nice snug fit in the heel and a roomy toe box (key to me.. the loser of toenails). And though it doesn't matter (IT TOTALLY MATTERS) they are way cuter in person than they are on the internet. The pink mesh is layered and gives it a really nice texture. The colors are really bright and pretty (for now anyway) and who wouldn't love the skull and cross bones on the back?

Sorry about the cruddy photo (I can't find my real camera...I'm blaming my husbands tendency to just put stuff wherever the hell he wants.) I'm hoping to be well enough to take these up to the gym with me on Sunday for a little TM spin. I'll report back after that!

I've had my head down the last couple of weeks... first staying a float while Tom was in Asia and then dodging the sick bullet for weeks and now I'm sick. BLASTED! I've also continued to clean out the house. We are really trying to simplify our lives and have LESS STUFF! I need things to be as simple as they can get before training starts in 2011.. there will be time for screwing around with a bunch of crap I rarely if ever use. It feels really good! REALLY good. (And my tri/running gear has even gotten a slim down.. a SMALL slim down, but I'm not leaving it untouched. Don't get me wrong we still have WAY more bikes than any family would EVER need, but that's really not mine to downsize if you know what I mean.) If I get the GREEN I'll replace a bike, but I PROMISE I will remove the current bike from the premises... the frame anyway)

So I'm still here... pluggin' along and praying for the sickies to vacate! I'm scared we're just going to keep giving it back to each other. Fingers crossed for health at the Mount household!!!

It's officially Christmas Season... It's Shutterfly time!

Every year I tell myself I'm going to get our CHRISTMAS cards out BEFORE Christmas and EVERY year I send a HOLIDAY card because I can't get my act together until AFTER Christmas. It's an endearing quality, no?

I suspect this year will be no different as it's Dec. 1st next week... I haven't yet logged into Shutterfly to peruse the choices for cards or to peruse my photos to see if we got anything 'card worthy' (and now also print worthy since all I do is shoot w/ my iPhone) throughout the year.

I've used shutterfly to make photo books in the past too. A nice way to chronicle the kids speedy growth. I'm also considering making a calendar this year... shh don't tell the grandparents!... It's so easy to upload your photos and then use them in the various options be it holiday cards, invites, calendars or photo books.

And sweet bonus.. Bloggers get 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly http://bit.ly/sfly2010 So if you are a blogger.. check it out. Save some coin so you can buy your sweet (uh, or yourself) something nice this holiday!!!

They have a really nice selection of designs to please all types. Go check it out!

GU Roctane Kona flavor

GU did a promotion during Kona.. I'm sure you remember.. where you could get a free box of GU Roctane in a special Kona flavor with the purchase of two boxes of GU. I went for it and got my box of Roctane w/ pretty hibicus flowers on it, but hadn't used it yet. I headed out for my run yesterday and was feeling a bit 'under nourished' and tired so I took two gels with me.. one chocolate and one Kona Roctane.

Three miles into this run I felt like CRAP and doubted I would make it the full hour. About 20 mins in I stopped to walk up a crazy CT Alps hill and decided to take the Roctane. I ripped the pouch open and squeezed some in... swished it around in my mouth to enjoy the nice KONA flavor. Hmm.. it tasted okay, but it had a kind of medicinal taste. It was a familiar taste.. WHAT WAS THAT!? AHA! I've had my fair share of dental work and if you haven't had that pleasure you may not be able to understand what I'm talking about. It tasted just like that gel stuff they put on your gums w/ a big huge Qtip. They flavor it (who knows why). It usually tastes a bit like bananas w/ a medicinal after taste. The KONA Roctane tasted exactly like that! EXACTLY! I've never used Roctane before (always just straight up GU) so I'm not sure if this medicinal taste is part of the Kona mix or the Roctane mix.

I chugged some water and kept on trucking. The medicinal flavor quickly subsided.

Would I recommend this product to a friend? Based on flavor... NO! Based on results... YES! I had started out on a lackluster run that I wasn't sure I would be able to complete and ended up completing my long run ... TWICE the time/distance as I had originally set out to do. I did have my other regular GU 45 mins after the Roctane, but I was really surprised at how much better I felt after taking the Roctane...

So if you are HUGE on the flavors skip this one, but if you are more about the results and can tolerate some 'not so awesome' flavor GO FOR IT!

hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving... save my 2 hour break for a nice long run I spent much of the day wiping noses, getting water and warm milk, taking temperatures and snuggling on the couch. All in all not a horrible thanksgiving. We needed some good snuggly down time.

Oh and I also whipped up this little gem of a bag. Well, finished it anyway. In the interest of cleaning out my house I found this wool shirt that my dad wore in Vietnam that I used to wear in my highschool days. I no long consider it part of my fashion repetoire, but I didn't want to part with it so I made it into a bag. Not too bad, eh?