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Thursday, August 29, 2013

FROM THE TAPER TO RACE DAY.....

Going into taper I was looking forward to spending more time with my family & catching up on sleep. I kept waiting for that feel good feeling & more energy,  but truth is that it never really came. I felt tired, lethargic, sore, heavy, & hungry all the time. I was eating everything in sight, so much so that I was weighing myself to make sure I was not gaining weight, I wasn't. I told coach Jen my concerns & she said that is how I am supposed to feel & stop weighing myself it will only make me crazy. She was right, it was making me nuts so I stopped. The last 3 week leading up to the ironman I was getting a massage a week form my friend Bernie, a massage student & accomplished triathlete. He played a major roll in getting my muscles race ready & helping me relax physically & mentally for one of the biggest days of my life. I can't thank you enough Bernie. I was so excited to leave for Louisville that I started packing on Monday to leave on Thursday. I even made Todd pack early so once he came home from apprentice school we could hit the road. Luckily he was able to get Friday off of school or it could have been an issue. I just wanted to get to Louisville to soak it all up!

THURSDAY~ I woke up early & made breakfast, eggs on sandwich thin with spinach & avocado, and yogurt & granola. Eva & i enjoyed our meal & while we waited for the rain to stop I finished packing things up & finally headed to the gym for my swim & bike ride since the rain was not stopping. After my quick workout I brought Eva to my in laws where her & Shane are staying for the next few days. She was very excited to go & without a doubt will be spoiled all weekend, isn't that what grandparents are for?! Once Todd came home we headed out & made one last stop to pickup a favorite dish of chicken & lemon rice for me & a pizza for Todd from a local restaurant before tackling the 5 hour drive to Louisville. They are 1 hour ahead so it was late when we arrived to our hotel. Not surprising but we were hungry again so went down to the hotel restaurant for some grub. I had a chicken & apple salad & cornbread....YUM! We stayed at the Hyatt which was just half a block from the ironman finish line on fourth street live. Fourth street live was like a little mini Vegas with all the lights, bars, & music. I wish I could stay and party but it was way past my bedtime.

FRIDAY~ slept in today till 8:30am! No workouts scheduled for today....yay! It was time to really start carb loading, so we were on a mission to find FOOD! We ended up at a place called Dish on toast & it was real southern home cooking deliciousness. I had a massive breakfast complete with eggs, pancakes, toast, bacon, hash browns, grits, orange juice, & coffee. Next was athlete check-in, I ran into some tri smart peeps & solidified our dinner plans. While waiting in line I was able to see the pro panel that included Kate Bevilaqua (IMLOU winner) & Nina Kraft who all i think about when i hear her name is how she was banned from racing for 2 years for doping. I think if you are a cheater you should be banned for life, just like Lance. Ok, enough of that rant, I got my ironman backpack with all 5 of my race bags & other goodies. Todd & I browsed the expo & picked up some items I needed & ran into some more friends. How exciting to have so many people there that I know. Recently my foot was hurting more than normal, to be honest it was feeling so good that i did a few runs without taping it like i usually do, turned out to be a big mistake. i visited the ART therapists to see if they could help me. They did some work on it & taped it for me but it still hurt. I was just praying it felt better on Sunday. It was once again time to eat....this time in the heart of fourth street live. We found a cool sports bar with stools outside & a restaurant & bowling alley inside. We had some very tasty pretzel bread sticks & chicken wraps. With full bellies we went back to catch a nap before dinner with my team at 5pm. Dinner was at the Old spaghetti factory since I am carb loading it was more of the same, pizza bread, & chicken penne pasta with a small side salad. After dinner we all walked over to the "mandatory" athlete meeting & agreed to meet up for our pre-race swim, bike, run tomorrow morning at 9am. I was hoping for a great night of sleep but my noisy neighbors kept me up till almost 3am....not good.

SATURDAY~ Surprisingly I woke up feeling good on such little sleep. I had my morning coffee some yogurt & granola & a banana and headed to the Ohio River for a little workout. I met my team & prayed the river was not as disgusting as I thought. It actually turned out to be fine, it was a little merkey and warm but did not taste bad. I always put water in my mouth.....anyway, it was a short 10 minute swim followed by a 20 minute bike, & a 10 minute run. It felt good to get the blood pumping & work up a sweat. The temperature was very comfortable for me but I knew race day was going to be hot. My team & I said our goodbyes till tomorrow. I wanted to drive the run course so I knew what was to come then it was time to feed me. We went back to Dish on toast & had the breakfast buffet. I had a spinach, mushroom, & tomato omlet, pancakes, bacon, biscuit, fruit, hash browns, orange juice, & coffee. I don't think they thought a chick could eat so much...haha! We went back to the hotel so I could start sorting my gear for all my race bags. Bike & bike & run gear bag drop off was from 12-5pm. Once that was all set I had some time to kill before my friends Vanessa, Ezeh, & Mia came to town. I am a fan of getting in the hot tub & pool before a race so Todd & I were off to the pool for some relaxation, unfortunately there was no hot tub. I was very disappointed but still splashed around in the pool for a bit, then decided I should go up & take a hot bath in place of the hot tub. Best idea EVER! I felt wonderful after that. By then my friends had arrived & we had dinner at the hotel that night. My dinner was blackened salmon with polenta & corn salsa...heaven I tell ya. The ironman finish line was all set up so we took a stroll to see it, in  about 24 hours with determination, strength & faith I would be crossing that finish line & becoming an ironman. Bedtime was near so we hugged & my girls wished me luck& I headed upstairs to make my bottles of nutrition for the race & double check everything & have one last conversation with coach Jen. She gave me a little pep talk & told me I was ready & I felt ready.

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