Love... And marriage... And kids... And Triathlon?!

Anyone around my age can sing the theme song to "Married With Children." The show was 'just crazy' to my preteen brain, but the song lives forever. "Love and marriage, love and marriage, go together like a horse and carriage..."

Or you could go with the childhood rhythm "First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage."

But wait, what happens when triathlon comes after that? It's not in the song or the rhyme. It's a new theme song with it's own drummer. The drummer? That would be me.

Love, check. (and I thank my lucky stars every day)

Marriage, check. However, married life while trying to work, run monthly 5ks, and train for a triathlon... It's work. I'm fortunate to be married to a fitness buff. Neither of us are saints. I know not to interrupt his weight-lifting sessions. He knows if I say, "I'm going for a run while it's a balmy 40°" to just watch the kids. I have my training time, mostly while the kids are at school and he's at work, and he has his training time after work [when I'm not working]. We make it work.

We budget for it too, which is an issue a lot of married triathletes deal with. I see a trainer, he sees a trainer. I buy a wetsuit, he buys supplements. I will need a new gym in March... he... never mind. I will budget for it.

Then come kids.

You can't "budget" kids. They need your time, energy, and love. I try to include them in my workouts and racing. One runs with me (he's got his own kids Tri in august). Another will play the iTouch while I ride the trainer. I look for races that also have Kid Runs so they can all participate. The youngest likes to be a "33 lb weight" when I'm at home. Starting in March the little one will come to the new gym with it's awesome Kids Room. In fact, this super-gym has a whole floor, basketball court, and pool/waterslide area just for kids! My older ones can't wait until I work out over the summer and they can play at the waterpark.

Last year I dragged my family to nearly all my races. I thought they'd enjoy seeing Mom compete, but I learned that the kids' perspective was more like, "I'm bored... Where's Mom? I'm bored... I see Mom [for 10 seconds]!! I'm bored... Are we done yet? Can I get another popsicle? Where's Mom?! I'm bored..." Times three, in our case.

You get the idea.

This year I've tried to choose races that are nearby so I can go alone and be home in just a few hours. Or I've picked races that my kids can participate in too, like the Zoo Fun Run. The only "family required" race is the triathlon because it's my BIG race, my son and sister are also running, and we'll be staying at a hotel downtown to be close to all the activity. Although I'm very tempted to leave the 3 year old with a grandparent so we can actually get sleep at the hotel... :-)

I hope through our training, racing, and dedication, my kids grow up to my version of the song:
"Love and marriage, love and marriage,
Go together like a race and mileage.
Dad was told by mother, you can't have one without the other..."

5k Registration Time

It's starting! Time to put my money were my mouth is, and actually register for races.

First up, the February 10th Cupid Dash.
Next, March's St Paddy's 5k.
April is all set for a Loop the Lakes 5k with my brother-in-law.
May I haven't paid for yet. I want to do the Race to Wrigley 5k, but I'm only driving to Chicago if my brother-in-law and/or sister run too. Otherwise it's a local Mother's Day 5k.
June was paid for last year- another Dirty Girl 5k Mud Run. All fun, no timing. :)
July.... Any suggestions?
August.... The event of 2013... My triathlon. Paid for last year too. :D

Bring it on!!

No pain no gain...

Or sadomasochism?

As I've been hobbling around the house tonight after three tough leg workouts, it dawned in me that the pain had somehow morphed from "this sucks" to "this is great!" When the heck does that happen, and why the heck do I look forward to the next round of pain?? :)

No pain, no gain is a phrase I've been familiar with since childhood. I grew up on the Cathy comics as soon as I could read. I've suffered for beauty over the decades. Botox... Dozens of needles poking into your face in an effort to freeze the nerves and prevent wrinkles. Hair colors that sting the eyes abs burn the scalp. There was even the accidental chemical peel once- that hurt more than a dozen sunburns! Dieting. Waxing. Tweezing. Ouch!!

Two years ago I was lifting weights. I GOT the "no pain no gain" from that. I'd do my workouts twice a week, using the other 5 days to rest and recover. Then a year ago I added in *just enough* cardio to work my way up to a Super Sprint triathlon and a few [subpar] 5k's. It was challenging, for sure, but I always had enough recover time to make it tolerable.

Or perhaps I only gave 95%...

This year my mind is in a different place. This year it's 110%. "The will to win means nothing without the will to prepare."

Which translates into workouts 5 days a week. Sore, barely walking legs. Can't move arms. Fatigue. Hunger.

Hell yeah, bring it on! 2013 is a New, and better, Year!!!

Reflecting... On running...

I keep thinking about this morning's workout. I ran a comfortable mile as a warm-up. A WARM-UP!!!

A year ago I couldn't run a mile straight. Maybe if my life depended on it, but certainly not on a cozy treadmill at the gym. I started at a 15 minute mile pace a year ago, and I could do about 1/2 mile before I had to walk.

Today I did an easy 11:30 minute mile. And I only set the treadmill on easy because it was a WARM-UP.

Need to PREPARE. First 5k is February 10!

First workout of 2013!

Easy peasy butt-kicking. ;) I did a 1 mile run to warm-up, followed by an hour long killer leg workout with my husband and personal trainer. My trainer really pushed us... I felt pretty good but hubby had a hard time walking when it was over.

Tomorrow, the bike. :)

A Plan!

Thanks to "1st Time Tri" (although it's technically not my first), I have a 12 week triathlon training plan. With small changes, the first 12 weeks are all running and biking. Then I'll do it AGAIN with all the swimming. (No pool until March.) That puts me at the end of June, with two more months to prepare even more before the Chicago Triathlon.

I'm excited! Plus, I still have monthly 5k races starting in March or April too! 2013 is going to be a great year!

Happy New Year!

2013 has SO many Fun and Exciting things planned! Races, triathlons, mud runs, and a few runs with my kids. We're also currently at Walt Disney World, and plan to travel to Las Vegas and the Wisconsin Dells this year. :)

When we get home I'll be kicking off my 2012 training. January, February, and March are dedicated to running and biking. Goal: 4 miles run and 15 miles biked without dieing. April brings my [indoor] pool membership, so April and May are dedicated to swimming. Goal: 1/2 mile without dieing. June and July are my "put it all together for triathlon training" months. Goal: not dieing when I put them all together. ;)

If I survive it all, my August Super Sprint Triathlon goal is 45 minutes, from last year's 63 minutes. It's not "placing time" but it's a very respectable time. :D And totally doable.

"The will to win means nothing with the will to prepare."