Event

So, part of why I am doing this triathlon is to raise money for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada.  I have signed up with Team in Training and committed to them that I would raise $5000!!

That is a lot of money.  In order to help with that I am holding a Pub Night event on Thursday, November 20.  It is at the Dublin Crossing Pub and tickets are $20.  A ticket includes a burger, fries, and drink (beer/wine/pop).  There will be live music, silent auction, raffle prizes and a toonie toss.

I have been busy scurrying around trying to secure prizes.  If you look on the side of my blog you will see a list of sponsors. Each of these individuals or businesses have donated a prize for the event.  In addition I will be auctioning off a custom cake by me.

I am excited about the event but also a lot nervous.  I have 80 tickets to sell!  Yikes!  If you are reading this and you live in the area and would like to attend please let me know.  I appreciate all of the support I have gotten so far.  It has been interesting challenging myself in so many ways.  Right now the challenge is asking people for prizes, money, and ticket sales.

Thanks for reading!

Pain

Swimming has been causing me both emotional and physical pain the last couple of weeks.  Not surprisingly my arms are a little shocked at the amount of effort I now expect them to put out.  I have been dealing with arm and shoulder pain which caused me to miss a class add Thanksgiving in there and it was about a week off.  

After my little break I headed back to class wondering how my arms would respond.  I swam and was feeling out of sorts.  My arms hurt.  I was swallowing more pool water than I would like.  I was moving slowly (no surprise there).  That is where the emotional pain came in.  Add all of my experiences together and I was feeling beat up.  I stopped to talk to my coach about my arms and ended up crying (much to the surprise of my coach I'm sure).

So, what next?  My coach recommended some stretches to me and I actually went home and did them.  Surprise surprise they made a difference!  The next day I had much less arm pain.  I missed class today due to a power outage but am committed to keep working and improving.  I have to remember that I am a better swimmer now than I was a month ago. I will add the predictable quote from Finding Nemo, "Just keep swimming."

Bike!

Last night after the kids were in bed and I was thinking about what to do with my free time Ward reminded me that I should probably get a workout in.  Swimming was cancelled yesterday so I had been secretly hoping to lay low.  No such luck!  There was a severe rainfall warning in effect so I decided it was time to get to know the bike trainer.  The first 5 minutes were pretty boring but once I forgot about the watch and just listened to the music time went by pretty quickly.  Of course I will need to get out on the road soon too but this is a good start.

My new bike all ready to go!

Lessons

It has been awhile since I posted but I have continued to work on training.  I have also learned a couple of lessons.

1.  It is important to know your limits.

A couple weeks ago I trained four days in a row.  Swim Monday, run Tuesday, swim Wednesday run Thursday.  Coming home from my run on the Thursday I felt great.  It was the most training I had done in a lot of years.  About an hour after getting home my left leg started to cramp in a couple spots.  I tried to convince myself it was nothing but I also know that in 2005 when I trained for the Victoria half that I had injured my left hamstring.  After thinking it through I realized I have six months to train and also learning a new sport.  There is no reason to push hard at the beginning only to cause injury.  So, I am trying to train smart.  Swim Monday and Wednesday, run Friday and maybe an easy bike ride on Saturday.

2.  Don't underestimate the importance of a team

Swimming is hard.  Did I mention I am not a swimmer and have never enjoyed swimming?  So, swimming is hard.  But, as someone wise said to me "It is supposed to be hard."  I am learning a new sport.  My body is adjusting and there is a lot to remember.  I can not imagine doing this without the Masters Swimming group.  They are my team right now.  Every class they encourage me to keep going, to try my best, and to do as much as I can.  The coach is also great.  She has been modifying my workout to improve my swimming and has mentioned that she has already seen a big improvement.  I may still have to stop at each end of the pool but at least I am still going.  I doubt I would have lasted 10 minutes just jumping in the pool and trying to swim without some sort of team.
One last thing - I bought a road bike!  So, expect some hilarious stories about how well I do with clip in shoes/pedals.