Practice makes permanent

....or so I’ve been told. I hope that is the case with my swim skills. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve improved a lot since this time last year. With a few improvements, I expect to see BIG BIG BIG gains. Those improvements involve my catch and pull, so that I’m actually pulling the water and not so relaxed when I pull.  Pulling with a forced intensity so the resistance is noticeable and I move forward with efficiency. Also, getting into a rhythm with my breathing. Swimming four strokes before breathing so that I don’t start to feel like I’m not getting enough breath. I’m going to work on that this week and test it during My Next Tri this coming weekend.  The benefit of that tri is I actually can swim freestyle and sidestroke or limited backstroke if I tire. But the goal is to freestyle it.  Lastly, I want to become a little more intense. :-)  I have to chuckle because my nature is so laid back. However, I need to turn it up a notch and get fired up a little when I participate in these events.

I’ve been practicing with my clips. Yikes! I can’t believe I’m actually riding with them. I will ride MNT with them. The course is 10 miles with some hills. I’m going to practice a couple times this week.  I'm reminded of the mental aspect of trying something new. I have to focus on shifting to the right gear, keeping my cadence, and not thinking so much about my feet being clipped in. If I do that, I’ll get through the race.

Keep moving forward…

Irongirl Atlanta 2012

All I can say is WOW!!

What a life changing experience.  I experienced such a range of emotions at the event.  Starting with the swim. As a new swimmer, I hoped it wouldn't take longer than 35 minutes to complete. Well, it took longer than that and I learned a lesson.  Although I can swim on my back in open water, it's not the best approach. My goal will be to improve my comfort level in the water, including breathing so that I can continuously swim freestyle 600 meters.  I'm not sure how long it will take to reach the goal but it's ok.  I'm in no rush. If I practice consistently and with focus, I'll get there.

Next up, the bike. I enjoyed the ride. By the time I left transition, the roads were fairly clear. The good thing was I wasn't the only one on the roads. The volunteers were offering words of encouragement and I took the time to thank them.  It was a reasonably relaxed ride. There was an accident on the course which caused a short delay. During that time, I chatted with other cyclists, shared water with someone who'd forgotten theirs and said a prayer for the fallen cyclist. 

Finally, the run. I was so pumped by the time the run arrived. Although I was tired, I felt energized. Jesse and Kam were there every step of the way cheering for me.  My friends from TNT and USAFit were also cheering.  I was so proud of myself on that day. Durly the first 90 minutes, on a number of occasions I had to dig deep and keep going.  Honestly, I wanted to quit during the swim a few times but I didn't, couldn't.  I put in so much work training and my family sacrified so much, I couldn't quit.

Running down the final chute, hearing the announcement that I'm not an Irongirl was incredible.  Thanks to everyone that provided support throughout the event and after.

Keep moving forward.