What's been going on?

Monday I officially began training for my first triathlon of the season. The Chattanooga Waterfront Olympic Triathlon on June 26th. It's a river swim...that'll be a first for me. I heard the bike is super hilly. I haven't heard anything about the run which leads me to believe the bike is traumatizingly hilly. One of the people that answers all of my tri questions said training at Stone Mountain will prepare me for the trauma.

It's also my first triathlon at the Olympic distance. I have decide to use a training plan from Garmin Connect. There's a level II and level III plan. I picked the level II plan when I saw the level III had training on 6 days a week. 

Some of the days without workouts are actually swim days.

I didn't want to get burned out before half ironman training begins. I'm going to use IronFit Secrets...when I start training for Augusta 70.3. Half ironman training actually begins before my Olympic so I'll switch to that plan on June 6th. A lot of athletes have successfully used this book to prepare for the half ironman so I'm going to do same. I initially thought I'd use the competitive plan to train, but I've decided the intermediate schedule will better fit my schedule (life).

Training manual

I know you're wondering what I've been up to all winter.

Well, I've been swimming..

Short pool at the hotel was no excuse not to swim. I use a Aqua Sphere stationary swimmer so I'm not doing 1,000 laps.

A very chilly OWS wasn't so bad with neoprene cap, wetsuit, gloves and booties.

I've been biking...

ATL Winter Bike League Group C. We're the best group.

Getting it in at the Energy Lab with Peachtree Tri Club.

And I've been run/walking...

Proof I've been running. If it's not on Garmin, it didn't happen.

I spent most of January on the injured reserved (no running) for hip pain. My orthopedist & physical therapist have ordered me to do yoga. I hate yoga, but I'm doing it. The best place ever is the top of Stone Mountain. My second favorite place is Decatur Yoga & Pilates. 

I'm a yogi.

I know I'm not the only person with a short attention span so I'll save what I've learned about nutrition and my sponsors for next time. So stay tuned because I'll be writing more often now that I really am tri-ing.

Born to pace.

Atlanta Track Club pace team.

I love pacing.  I'm pretty sure I was born to pace because I am so good at it. FYI for those that don't know, a pacer volunteers to run a race and finish at specific time.

Alien 13.1 

Why do I love pacing? Glad you asked. I love helping people reach their race completion and time goal. I only pace the 2:45 or slower because:

1.  The fun is at the back of the race. We chat, dance, & of course run/walk.

2.  I need to be comfortable at the pace so I can talk to the people running with me.

3.  It is great seeing someone who never thought they would ever do a half marathon finish or someone finish faster than they have in previous races. 

Michelob 13.1

Yesterday, I paced the Michelob 13.1. I originally signed up to be Back of the Pack, but was asked if I could pace the 2:50 or 3:00 group & of course I said yes because I was born to pace. My group was the best. There were two 69 year-old best friends (Rick & Lew) that ran the entire race with me. They have been friends since they were 10. Rick could have easily run a faster pace, but he said he was loyal to his friends and yesterday, I was his friend so he was finishing with me. He didn't mention Lew, but I know he wouldn't leave him either.

....and I got a medal.

If I don't learn the name of people that run with or near me...there's a difference...they get a nickname. "FL" was actually a husband & wife couple who stayed with me despite not being used to running hills. There was "CamelBak" who stayed with me the entire race as well, but he was in a zone & didn't talk. There were "Fancy Pants", the lady who said "Darn it" every time she saw me, "Pink shirt guy" & "Shadow" (a name she gave herself...I actually learned her name) who stayed with me for most of the race, but we lost them on those ugly hills on the second half of the race.  

A few other runners joined me the near the finish. All were 1st timers. One woman didn't know what mile we were at & she only had a mile to go. At the finish, her husband thanked me because he said she was ready to quit until I encouraged her to run with us. The second was a young man who said he felt strong, but his feet were killing him. His face at the finish line was the best because he was super happy.

Pace was 3:00, Garmin time was 3:00, & official time was 2:59:52.  That's pretty darn good.

Finally, there was a 65 year-old man named Jeff. He walked the entire half in 2:58:50. I think he shed a little tear when he finished. He gave me and the 2:50 pacer big sweaty hugs which I gladly accepted. Plus note this is the only time sweaty hugs are acceptable. There are always hugs when I pace. 

Yep, I'm born for this.

So just let me introduce myself

So just let me introduce myself. My name is not Humpty, pronounced with a Umpty. It's Crystal. I have been participating in triathlons for three years. My first triathlon was supposed to be a pool triathlon, but it rained so much the week prior the bike portion was canceled. So it became a Splash and Dash. 

My first "triathlon"

Probably the worse performance in a pool triathlon. The water was 55 degrees and the air temperature was in the 60s. It was horrible!!! I did the entire swim on my back. My 2nd tri was in a lake...also all backstroke. There was a third tri. Another horrible swim...not all backstroke, but it did involve kayak, buoy & safety float holding.

The longest 250 yards ever

In 2014, I decided I would not do any triathlons. I'll do duathlons, but some how got talked into completing three triathlons. My swims were not horrible & I even placed 1st at a mini sprint. The 3rd tri was a tri I'd done the prior year. I needed redemption. Apparently, I was so bad they remembered me. While I improved, I can't really call it redemption because I still hung onto a couple buoys and a safety float. 

My 2014 medals. I paced five half marathons , I paced one 10 miler, placed 1st AG at mini sprint, one women's sprint finish, four duathlons AG place, and one duathlon series first place.

So it seems like duathlons might be my thing. Right? No! This year, I gave myself a big triathlon goal. I would do one triathlon per month April thru October. I even included an intermediate distance on my race calendar. Yep, I was going to swim 1500 meters in a lake. To help me reach this goal, I joined Peachtree Triathlon Club and Dekalb Aquatics Master Swim. Long story short, I did not do that intermediate, but I have completed seven sprints and did the swim on a sprint relay. All of these swims were completed without hanging on to a single kayak, buoy or safety float. I did turn unto my back a few times, but nothing like last year. Best part of 2015 was finishing third place age group (AG) in a triathlon series. Progress! Yes, I really was tri-ing.

If it's wetsuit legal, I'm wearing a wetsuit.

Race face.

I look fast.

Nine days from now, I'll complete my final triathlon for 2015 and begin a Half Ironman Winter Maintenance training program. Yep you read that right. I am going to complete a Half Ironman in 2016. That's 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike and 13.1 run. 

So now you are update.