March 10, 2009
Mari

I was swimming last night with my local triathlon club, CWW, and like Team WILD, we’ve started the endurance phase of training. So we were swimming long, slow distance. But I’m in the advanced group, so long and slow doesn’t mean easy. As part of the workout, we did four 250’s, the goal being to swim each one at the same pace, so we had to focus on not going too fast the first one.

In between each set we got progressively less time to recover. Between the first and second, we got 30 seconds. Then 25 seconds. Then 20 seconds. Well, on the last set, I was doing great, then all of a sudden, I felt like I was floating. And I felt kind of dreamy. Then I had to pee like a banshee. This feeling is one of the ways my body tells me my blood sugar is really low. But I just didn’t want to stop. This was a great workout, I felt strong, and I wanted to keep going.

I thought about just continuing. I probably wasn’t THAT low. I had my pump off. I had eaten right before the workout. I must be fine. Right? But the dreamy feeling was weird. That is something new. Then I thought about the Longhorn in October. Decided I need to learn my body NOW so that I can be better prepared THEN. So, I stopped. Got out. Tested. Blood sugar was 47.

Holy crap. No wonder I was dreamy. There were only 15 minutes left in the workout. I could tel,l based on how I felt and the 28 years I've had diabetes, that it would likely take that long to feel right enough to get back in the pool, so I took the time to think about things. As I sat there, thinking, I thought about how long 70.3 miles really is. This triathlon is not a walk in the park. This is serious. It’s one of the harder challenges I’ve undertaken in my life. And, we each have to do it under 8 hours, or they kick us off the course.

What does this mean? Well, I was thinking: I can swim 1.2 miles in 38 to 40 minutes. I expect to allow myself 5 minutes in the transition area. Now I’m up to 45 minutes. What about riding 56 miles on the bike? It’s a fairly flat course, but still, 56 miles… that’s a LONG way to ride my bike. With essentially no getting off the bike. This is NOT a Tour de Cure ride with a rest stop every 10 miles. NOPE, this is RIDE THE BIKE. Eat nutrition ON THE BIKE. Be focused! Have fun, but this is a RACE!!!

I do a 62 mile Tour de Cure ride in about 5 hours. I will have to go faster than that for this, because I need all the time I can get on the run. I am a slow runner. So, if I want to do the bike portion in 4 hours, I have to average about 15 miles an hour. That’s AVERAGE speed. Four an ENTIRE 4 hours. (think of HOW MUCH A PERSON CAN DO IN FOUR HOURS... that's A LONG TIME!) I wonder, can I go faster than that? I guess I’ll have to see this spring. I need to build speed and power this year. (nicole, you hear me!!!) Okay, I’m getting nervous writing this! Gals, this is the BIG TIME!!!

Now, the transition between the bike and the run, for the sake of consistency, I will say 5 minutes for this. I hope I can be that fast, I will need to practice bricks, cause I’m thinking my legs are going to be really wobbly at this point.

Now a 13.1 mile run. Like I said above, I am a slow, slow runner. I am hoping I can average 13 minute miles. That’s what I did on the half marathon I did in June 2008. But I hadn’t just biked 56 miles and swam 1.2 miles. That’s 2 hours and 50 minutes to finish the run. Okay, that’s too slow. I wonder if by October I could improve and run 12 minute miles? I am so glad I’ve lost 11 pounds and by our camp I intend to lose 4 more pounds. I think carrying 15 less pounds than last season might help make me faster.

Otherwise, WILD women, I hope you all come to the finish line to welcome me to the end of the race! I may JUST make it under the 8 hour limit!! Writing this now, seven months before we meet in Austin for the race, makes me understand the vital importance of training and of attending camp and of having a plan and sticking to it. Thank you Yoli, Celeste, Nicole, Matt and Marcey and to the whole team. Your support and instruction is even more key than I realized before this little reflection. I’m glad my blood sugar was low, it gave me a minute to think and be thankful. And get excited for this challenge.

GO WILD WOMEN!