Opportunities/Suncoast RR

        As I receive e-mails about registration for the spring semester, I find myself absolutely terrified about the future. I have 2 more semesters and an internship left, and I'm wondering where the heck the past 2.5 years have gone. I'm coming to this bitter realization that college life must end and actual life must begin...and soon. I know that nothing is ever crystal clear, but the cloudiness ahead worries me. I'm not quite sure where I fit in this world.

    All of this had me worried sick over the past couple of weeks, but I've taken some time also to stop and feel grateful for all of the opportunities that I have been given while attending the University of Florida. I've had the chance to personal train at one of the best collegiate recreational facilities in the country. What had seemed like a dream when I asked about the personal training class during my first summer here in Gainesville is now a reality. I've learned so much from the great staff we have in the PT department and from training for 4 semesters now. Every time I walk into Southwest Recreational center with the letters "Personal Trainer" printed on the back of my shirt, I feel genuinely lucky to have been given the opportunity to train students and staff at UF.

    This year I also acquired a new job as the president of the TriGators triathlon club. I'm so proud of being able to improve a club that has given so much to me in my first two years in college. I've learned so much from the extra responsibility; I would even argue that I've learned more about life from the club than I have from any other single experience. I have wholeheartedly enjoyed every minute of it, even the few bumps in the road that I've hit. It's an experience that I'm glad I took on; and I have to thank all of my teammates for allowing someone like me to try to keep things in order. (key word: try)

Also, just attending this university was a huge opportunity in itself. I just have so much to be thankful for.

So, on to the race this weekend. Let me preface this by saying that I raced this same course 1 min faster than last year. That's definitely encouraging, considering last year I was in pretty darn good shape as I was gearing up for my marathon. But unfortunately I have no idea where that time came from, as my chip from last year has probably washed up on the shores of Mexico by now. If I had to guess, it probably came from the bike leg.

The swim was a bit of rough start, with all 78 collegiant athletes (men and women) going off in one wave.Beach starts have never been a strength of mine. I was slow at charging into the water, and then bottomed out on my first attempt at a dolphin dive. I literally dove into the sand (whoops, a little too early), and I feel lucky that I didn't emerge from the water with a mouthful of sand. I found a lot of contact out to the first buoy, but after that I had a pretty smooth swim. I sighted well and stayed on line, which doesn't happen that often. I also think that my effort was higher than usual, given the way I was panting upon trudging to shore. My legs burned as I waved through the water, and I was thinking "Man, this is going to be a long bike ride". Figuratively, of course. The bike course was short 9.5 miles.

   To my surprise, the bike actually went fairly well. I got a glimpse of the sun rising over the Sunshine Skyway, and a smile crept onto my face. I always stop myself a couple times a race just to enjoy the fact that I'm racing somewhere beautiful. Coming out of T2, I grabbed a cup of water and tossed it back too quick. I coughed and choked for a quarter mile or so, spitting up water and clearing the water from my lungs. People watching probably thought I was dying or something. I eventually got into a good rhythm on the run, despite my bum hip. Coming up to first aid station, I saw a flag for snowcones, so as the volunteers announced if they had water or Gatorade in their cups, I asked if I could have a snowcone instead. They seemed to get a good kick out of that. Most of the back half of the run was on sand, and it threw me off a little. I had a blank mind and good concentration for a while, but once I hit the loose footing, I had to focus to much about my footsteps and it annoyed me.

     I had a strong finish, with a good sprint at the end to pass the 4th place girl. I was kind of dramatic upon crossing the finish lone and sat down for a while before allowing the volunteers to take the chip off of my ankle. One of the guys helped me up, and I realized that I was being pathetic. Sometimes it just seems so right at the moment....but I hate it when I do that. Overall, I'm happy with the race. feeling undertrained has lit a bit of a fire under my...well you know. The triathlon season may be coming to a close, but I feel ready to put some solid training in to get ready for a solid spring.

Most of all, I'm just thankful for being out there wearing the orange and blue.

    

Battle Of the Bridges Race Report

   There a was an eerie amount of familiarity in the air. Driving over the beautiful Melbourne causeway, entering transition to a friendly voice on a megaphone, getting thrashed by the rougher oceanic waves that feed the river that hosted the swim course. However, this race was much different than the one I did 2 years ago.

         Two years ago, this race was my first of the Olympic distance, and my 3rd triathlon ever. I wore a sports bra and spandex, rode my Trek 1000 road bike, and entered transition as a ball of nerves. I doubted that I would even complete the race. But I did, with a decent time, I might add. I crossed the finish line thinking that it was the hardest thing I had ever done. This time, I woke up race morning as the TriGator president, unloaded my Speed Concept from my car, and sported my Kiwami tri-suit. I've lost count of how many triathlons I've raced, and an Olympic distance race is routine. But that doesn't mean that I wasn't a ball of nerves. I have a feeling that no matter how long I race, I will always have those pre-race butterflies. There's nothing wrong with a little case of the wiggles when you're about to lay it all on the line.

        The air was humid but tolerable from the large volume of rain the area received the night before. I chatted with the other college triathletes after I set up my transition area, which I can practically do on cruise control now. I love the atmosphere of the FCTC races; all of the teams know each other ans support each other (nowhere near the hostility displayed on the football field). I'm always in awe of the camaraderie of college triathlon. We made our way down to the water for the start, and after doing 2 Gator cheers (we just had to, we had beaten LSU in football the day before)it was time to press our watch buttons and dive into the water.

      The water was rough, just as I had remembered. I found myself Tarzan swimming over waves in order to get a glimpse of the buoys. Swimming the course correctly is always an issue for me. I know so because while my pool times have improved, my triathlon times have not. Open water swimming is just one of those things you have to practice; unfortunately it isn't easy to do so. Swimming is still a huge source of frustration for me. I've gone as far as blaming my body type for my poor swimming--which I'll admit is stooping pretty low. Work in=results out, in everything.

     After cursing under my breath and taking a very ugly run-in-to-T1 picture (thank you, race photographers for catching me in my element) I hopped on my bike and gutted out a decent bike split. I went by some volunteers with a radio at one point, and one of my favorite songs (Paradise, by Coldplay) was playing. I instantly started singing and pounding my pedals a little harder. It really pumped me up!

     The run is what I'm most ashamed of in this race. I'm aware that I'm not in very good run shape, but at the same time I had a stretch where I felt pretty darn good (mile 2-4), and then there was the bridge. The course had up run up an enormous bridge, run a quarter mile after descending, and then turning right back around and up the bridge again. What torture. It is here that I started to hurt. Some poor hydration on the bike led to the debilitating ab cramps that I'm famous for. I stood doubled over on the top of the bridge, grimacing in pain. I knew there was only a mile left, but it was so hard to even get my body upright so that I could run. I ran for a while with almost a 90 degree bend at my hips; I was doing anything to keep moving. As the finish line came in view, I was able to hold up for a bit so that I could look decent in front of the crowds of people towards the finish (a shallow thought, I know). I finished with a Gator chomp and a fist pump.

   Overall, I'm not incredibly happy with this race. It has nothing to do with the splits, place, or race difficulty. I hated how I felt. I know I'm undertrained, and I definitely feel it. My legs felt heavy, I was breathing hard, and I felt like I was merely surviving, not racing. I was spoiled with a really good spring season, where I was able to split off a 10K as if I hadn't ridden my bike 25 mile prior. I want that back. Really bad. My competitiveness is gone. I've decided it's a negative part of my personality that I was to rid myself of. I just want the feeling back. Place doesn't matter, and neither does time. I just want to feel like Kacy again, running as if I was floating. I'll get there, I just have to be patient.



        

The Unplanned experiment

     The past few weeks have been rough, for lack of a better word. I've had exams, increased work hours, and other odds and ends pushed onto my already crowded plate. I felt stressed, overly emotional, and weak. No wonder. I was doing all of the things that I tell my clients (and others) not to do. I got less than 6 hours of sleep at night. My diet turned into cereal and Clif Bars. Workouts were short, unproductive, aimless, and only made me feel worse.

Let's examine these factors of overall health one-by-one, shall we?

1.Sleep


Sleep is so important that it can be the limiting factor in advantageous responses to exercise . It is the only time that some of your systems get to rest (namely, the nervous system) and it is the main stage for bodily repair. Growth hormone is released during sleep, so to maximize strength and muscle gain, try paying some time to your bed rather than $30.00 on protein (sorry, to offend anyone, I have a beef about protein powder). Everyone's requirements are different in this department, but sleep has a lot to do with Circadian rhythms and internal body clock. Just because someone feels fine on 4 or 5 hours of sleep per night doesn't mean that their body appreciates it. They just perceive that amount as "normal" and therefore are simply used to it. Keeping a steady sleep schedule is key. Life doesn't always allow it, but if you can, go to bed and wake up at the same time, and have a routine for both ends of the day. In case you haven't noticed, your body loves routine.

2. Diet

Okay, so my idea of a bad diet week is probably a good week for most people. This week's diet was bad in a random way; not a cheeseburger and fried chicken sort of way. I ate my regular breakfast of oatmeal, an apple and maybe a Clif bar for lunch, and then cereal for dinner...with some vegetables sprinkled in, of course. Although this may sound fine to some, it was extremely unbalanced; mostly because I didn't have a cookie in each hand (kidding). Regardless, I know it contributed to my lethargy.

One of my favorite motto's when it comes to diet is that if you put good in, you will get good out. You can't put unleaded fuel in a Ferrari. It's amazing how good you can feel when you eat well. Neglecting to give your body the proper nutrients at the proper time forces your body to work without the resources it needs. It's like getting lost without a map: it's going to take a lot more energy to find your way back than it would have you had a map (or GPS, I suppose we are in the 21st century)

Adequate nutrition is a huge problem for endurance athletes, mostly because the problem can be unidentifiable. If you chronically train on low fuel, then you don't know what it feels like to train with enough fuel. You really have to be in tune with your body and constantly assessing your energy levels. This is where a training log comes in handy, so that you are forced to do a quick "body check" every day.

  Not only is it imperative that calorie intake is met, but extra nutrients are also needed as training volume increases. The only true way to know if one is consuming enough is to get a rough estimate of how many calories are typically burned on a training day and then matching intake to that. Making sure that your macronutrients (carbs, proteins, fats) are in check is important too. I think of them this way: Eat enough carbohydrates to fuel your training, enough protein to repair what you break down during training, and enough healthy fat to augment the two. There is much debate about ratios of the above, and it is different for everyone. But I can tell you that no matter what your goals or activity levels are, planning is key. If you know you have a busy week coming up, (or every week is busy) be sure to shop intelligently and have a couple of "fast meals" in mind for when things get hectic.

3.Workouts

When time is a commodity, the workout is the first thing to go for most people. I can't tell you how many times I've overheard people on campus say something like "Bro, I haven't been to the gym in so long, I've had 2 tests this week and an interview..." And then they say something about regaining their swoleness after these obligations are over. However, exercise is important in stress reduction and brain function. It helps you focus and feel better during rough times. However, you have to modify your workout to your current needs.

I did the opposite of the above scenario. I tried to keep up with my regular routine while my body was compromised in the way described above. I ended up just exhausting myself and having a string of poor workouts. What I should have done is reduce the intensity of my workouts and done them at a time that allowed me to sleep in (as opposed to 6:30 AM). Sigh, I  suppose I'm too stubborn for that.

Each workout needs to serve a purpose, and you have to think about what you are trying to achieve. Doing a hard workout in stressful times is borderline pointless; the hormones that are released at this time work against your body's adaptation mechanisms. One week of light exercise won't derail any training plan, regardless of how far along you are (or what phase, if you are fancy and have a periodized plan)

But if you are simply short on time, there is no excuse for why you can't get a good workout in. for example, One day last week I had only an hour to workout  and I was stuck at the gym. So I did an interval workout with a rower, box jumps, and ladder drills. I was drenched in sweat and satisfied 45 minutes later, including warm up and cool down. There is a short and intense workout that can be effective, no matter what kind of athlete you are. You just have to be crafty and tailor it to your goals.

So the moral of the story is to focus on the little things. We think too much about the details of our training/fitness routine that we forget to think about the little things that matter the most: diet, sleep, and tissue quality. Hopefully you can take away something from this little unplanned experiment of mine. I know I did.