"It's Just a Cold!"

That's what I've been telling myself for the past two weeks. My doctor did say to come in if my headache got worse but of course I thought it was fine. My Mom and Ward both insisted I get checked out again as I really have no energy right now. Off to the walk in clinic.

What did the doctor say? Sinus infection along with post virus asthma. When I told her about my training and race she confirmed no exercise right now. She also said she doesn't think I will be race ready next month. I have to go back Thursday so we will see what she says then.

Struggles

Well, here I am 6 weeks to race day and still full stop resting. It is a little frustrating to be this sick and just sitting around. I am starting to question whether or not I am going to be able to complete the race. I was not ready when I got sick and I am still not healthy enough to go back to full on training. I will keep you posted on my progress.

Thank you to everyone who has donated to my fundraising. It is amazing to be able to support an organization such as the LLSC. I appreciate your support as does my cousin Christi. I am racing in honor of her son, Dustin who passed away at the age of 12 after fighting hard to try and beat Leukemia. As a mom myself, I can't imagine struggling with my child in this way. I pray for peace for you, Christi, and and honored to remember Dustin by racing for him.

Rest

A little update on how things are going. As mentioned in my last post I was told to go to the doctor. It turns out I have a cold (ha ha). Nothing that requires medication, but I do need to rest. Since then I have been feeling worse but am hoping that will start to turn around soon. It is really frustrating to have to rest this close to race day. Especially since I am not ready. Oh well, not much else I can do!

Fundraising update:

I am at $3820 which is awesome! Thanks to the positive response so far to my emails, they will continue to trickle out.

Disappointed

After last week's workout load I was looking forward to getting at it this morning. About 45 minutes into my swim my coach basically kicked me out of the pool. I have been coughing and she decided enough was enough. I have been ordered to the doctor and was sent to the hot tub.  As much as I enjoyed spending a half hour in the hot tub (waiting for my ride) this is not the start to my workout week I was expecting. 

Resting tonight and off to the doctor tomorrow.

Week in Review

This week it was back to training as usual. I have changed my workout load leading up to the race so here is what my week looked like:

Sunday: rest
Monday: early morning swim & afternoon tempo bike ride
Tuesday: rest
Wednesday: early morning swim & evening short run
Thursday: afternoon short ride
Friday: early morning long rune & evening swim
Saturday: early morning long ride followed directly by tempo run

That's 9 workouts! 9! Never did I think I would fit all of that into one week. Looking forward to doing it all again this week.

Fundraising update: I am currently at $3550 which is amazing! That leaves $1450 to go. I going to start contacting people individually so you can look forward to that. ;)

Did I mention the race is NEXT MONTH???? Yikes!

Rest

Last week I did something I was not planning to do. I took a week off. It seems I have a cold and in order to keep it from getting worse I made the decision to spend my time sleeping and resting instead of getting my workouts in.  

It definitely felt weird to sit around and not get up so early but it also seemed like the wise thing to do. I still have a cough but I am going to try to get back to working out this week. With just under 9 weeks to go I don't have a lot of extra time!!

I am going to try to add a couple extra workouts to the schedule this week. If all goes well I will have 3 swim, 3 bike, and 3 run workouts spread over 5 days. Never thought I would say that! Also might try to get the bike out of the basement and ride outside this weekend. 

Thanks for reading!

Why

Lately I have been spending a lot of time asking myself why. More specifically her are all of the thoughts rattling around in my head:

-Why in the world am I doing this?
-Am I crazy?
-Can I even finish?
-Will I ever get any faster in the pool?
-Will I be able to raise the money or will I end up having to pay for my trip and my fundraising commitment?

I was talking to a friend about this and she asked me to answer one of these questions for her. She wanted me to remind her, (and myself) why I signed up in the first place.

Why did I sign up? There are a few reasons. The superficial ones are that I want to get in shape. I see 40 looming on the horizon and want to be in better shape by my birthday. I want my girls to see me active. I want them to know that it is OK to try something new. Something you might not enjoy (cough cough, swimming). Something that is really hard for you (still swimming). That if you want to get better at something you need to work hard, and then work harder.

That is the why of racing. Why sign up for this specific race? Why Team in Training? There are any number of other things I could have signed up for. This is the answer that I need to remember. I think about all of the people in my life who have struggled with or are currently struggling with cancer. People who have lost children, spouses, family, friends. People who have survived and now continue praying for health. All of these people inspire me. There is so much pain, sorrow, love, and even joy in their stories. I am inspired but also at a loss as to how to help. What could I possibly say or do that would be of use? Not much. BUT I can raise money. Money that will go to patient care, research, and family support.

That is why I signed up and that is what I need to remember. The rest will follow along.

12 weeks to go!!

**Please consider donating on my fundraising page. Every donation brings me closer to my goal. Just click the donate here link on the top right of the page.***