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Look How Far I Have Come...

Wow...the last 8 weeks have been crazy busy! I do apologize for not blogging sooner.

Over the course of this time, we have come so far...each one of us. Let's see the last time I blogged it was pouring rain and I got 2 flat tires in one ride. I am happy to report that I have not gotten another flat while out on a ride since then (knocking on wood) and well the rain has been still a wee bit of a problem. The first part of March we were faced with rain...and more rain...and more rain. Needless to say our training, especially hill training, as a team has suffered slightly. The training on my own however has been overall pretty good. I work hard to swim at least one of the 2 days on the schedule, spin class twice a week, track practice, and Saturday trainings. My hardest days are Sunday runs, I just can’t seem to get my butt out of bed after a week filled with training, work, more work at night, and the normal house routine. I am proud of my training though. I have become more comfortable in the pool and with my swimming, I feel more comfortable on the bike with clip-less petals, and while I am no gazelle my running is going well too.

The last weekend in March was Practice Weekend...Yippeee!!!! I was so excited for this weekend and to learn more about the course. Brian and I drove down Friday afternoon and set up camp ready for what was about to be the hardest two days of training either of us have ever had.

Saturday started out with an Open Water swim in Lake San Antonio. Wet suit and all I got into the water and thought to myself "I can do this". The water was cold, but not unmanageable. We swam out a little and then swam back for instructions. On the way back I decided I needed to put my face in the water....hmmmm, maybe I wasn't quite ready for that yet. (Start freak out) I panicked because I could not see the bottom or very far in front of me. Yes, seems crazy, but this is truly a fear I have. So...then I started feeling like I couldn't breathe, I was having an asthma attack, and this just wasn't going to work out. Brian came over to try and calm me down, but he needed to do his swim, so a coach took over. Richard stayed with me the whole time as I ventured out away from the comfort of land. He had me put my face in the water and take a couple stokes...success! Then I opened my eyes...damn it!! Back to square one. He sang songs to me to calm me down and made me smile. We were out there for about an hour and I did a few segments of swimming face in, eyes closed. The key is I can't open my eyes or I start to panic. Luckily, the coaches are FANTASTIC and have added more open water swims to the schedule for those who want additional practice.

After we were back to the comfort of land, we got ready to head out on the bike...56 miles here we go! This was the part I was most nervous about going into the weekend, but after that swim experience my thinking changed slightly. ;o) The scenery was absolutely spectacular, green fields, wineries, pastures, hills...gorgeous. It really took away from the difficulty of this ride. The support staff was awesome, too. Brian and I took up the rear and Robert was our sweeper. He was great....encouraging, helpful and great company. We were also joined by a coach, Barney, who is phenomenal as well. Together we rode the entire course, Nasty Grade hill and all. For those who don't know anything about the Wildflower course, here is a description of Nasty Grade via the triathlon website: "Nasty Grade, a nearly five mile grade which climbs 1000 feet from bottom to top" This hill is no joke!!! I rode the entire distance on my bike without stopping on this hill....YAY!!! So proud of that! By the time we made it back to camp my tushy was sorer than ever...going to the bathroom was a challenge. Ouch! I know this all sounds horrible, but in the bigger picture is I had just finished a day of 'firsts' and was so happy about that.

Sunday continued our adventure with a half marathon (13.1 mi). We ran the half in 2:50 and felt good about that time. There were a lot of hills, one of them pretty steep and on uneven trail terrain. When we finished we were exhausted, but so proud of ourselves and all our accomplishments of the weekend. :o)

This past week brought more hill training at track, swimming and a 53 mile bike ride on Saturday. Our ride on Saturday included the infamous Old La Honda road. Again for those who are not familiar here are some quick facts about Old La Honda:

• Distance: 3.37 miles
• Elevation gain: 1290 feet
• Average grade: 7.2%
• Max grade: 15%

I can now proudly say I have completed this climb...YAY. Will I ever do it again? I certainly hope not!!! However, you never know as it offers great hill training for cyclist and triathletes. I will say this; I will NOT be doing that climb again any time soon!! In fact, I don't want anything to do with that hill right now. I have bitter sweet feelings about this hill....on one hand I appreciate the training it provided me and am thankful for that opportunity; the mental and physical challenges I had to overcome to accomplish this was amazing. One the other hand, it is not something I considered fun and I just didn't like it. I did it and I am amazed that I did!!! Go Dena!

Fundraising Website: http://pages.teamintraining.org/sj/wildtri11/dzlatunich

Back to work...Week 4

Alright…Week 4…bring it!!! (2/17 & 2/19)

Since it was a torrential down pour on Thursday night….I opted out of track practice. However, I did not feel guilty about this because I had already gone to my spin class that afternoon during lunch.

We were at Gunderson High School again on Saturday…the weather was iffy, but we were goin’ for it. This week they split us up based on our events – Wildflower Olympic & Maui were one group & Wildflower Long Course was the other. Brian and I are training for and hoping to complete the Wildflower Long Course (1.2mi swim, 56mi bike, & 13.1mi run). So our group was in the pool first and at the time I was happy about this. We went through drills again – working on stroke, breathing, and kicking. I apparently swim with my head looking too far ahead of me. So, I have to keep my head looking down. Hmmmm…some how that was harder than it sounds. I started getting all out of wack…breathing in water, choking, stroke was all crazy. I guess I know what I will be focusing on during my Monday & Wednesday swims. Coach Caroline also had us count how many stokes it took us to get to the other side of the pool. Typically it should take about 14-16 stokes…I’m at 22. :o/ Make that 2 things I need to focus on! When all was said and done…we swam close to a mile. SWEET!

Alright, after changing it was bike time. Finally, some time riding….26miles of time. This was a BIG increase in miles for me. I was definitely up for the challenge, even in the light rain. I also decided to switch groups…I was now riding with the Elite group. We set out and it was definitely wet, but not too bad. Unfortunately as we got further out, the rain got heavier and the roads got worse. I kept telling myself to focus and that I could accomplish this…it was a great challenge for me both mentally and physically. That is until I got my first flat tire at mile 5. Damn it! Luckily Brian was with me and my coach was not far behind. I had not purchased any of my repair supplies so I had nothing to change the tire with. Coach Dave changed my tire for me as I watched and tried to soak in the process. Of course, we were in the rain freezing and getting wetter by the second. Luckily the SAG car came to get us and bring me to the front of the pack, who by this time was 7miles ahead. So, let’s see…26-7= 19mi bike ride for me. Ok, so now I am back on the road…yay! I ride about another mile with the group…another FLAT. REALLY??? 2 flat tires in one day? I yell out that I have a flat tire, but I don’t know the people around me by name, so I just yell” I have a flat”….no one stops. The two people I actually know are in the front of the pack and so far ahead they would have never heard me. There I am on the side of the road, thinking “crap, of all days to not have my phone. Now what do I do?” I knew I needed to be safe and not do anything stupid. I walked a little farther up the road to the parking lot of Calero Reservoir where I saw cars and people. I asked a man to borrow his cell phone and called Brian (who was still in the SAG car drenched and freezing)…no answer. I leave him a message letting him know where I am. While I am making this phone call I see him in the SAG car drive past me…Grrr! Okay…well my next hope is that another team member rides by who has the SAG car phone number. Lucky for me, someone else got a flat tire and Brian had to turn around. He saw me on the side of the road and picked me up. My ride was done for the day! As soon as I got home all the team phone numbers went into my contacts and I will never be forgetting my phone again. I also changed my tire, by myself! Yay me!

No drowning!! Bike 2 Dena 0

Fundraising Website: http://pages.teamintraining.org/sj/wildtri11/dzlatunich

Wedding Planning Break....Week 3

Not much training happened during week 3....as we went to Florida to plan wedding #1. It was a very productive weekend in that regard....not so much for the triathlon.

Definitely no drowning or falling off the biking!!!! :o)

Tri Training...Week 2

Training week two looked something like this…

Thursday was track practice at Foothill College. We started out with a short 2 lap warm up. Then went through stretches as a team. After stretching we were split into 4 groups and had 4 different stations to go to. Brian and I were in the same group and went the Running Form station first. We had to pay close attention to our form and try to correct anything that was "off". Of course our coach, Dave, explained what we should be doing....and I can't remember what that was. HAHA!! Second station was the Leg Strength.....you guessed it - lunges, squats & balancing...oh my! After about 20min of continuous leg exercises, we moved on to the Arm Strength station. In this station we had to do push ups, arm/shoulder circles (you know the ones you used to do in 8th grade gym class), & dips. Finally the last station was core......planks, sit-ups, and more sit-ups. In between each station we ran around the track. Holy cow....the next day Brian and I were sore sore we were laughing at each other.

This week we were meeting at Gunderson High School in San Jose. This was great for Brian and I, as it is only 5 minutes from our house…woo hoo…& we were having a strength clinic first. A former TNT Tri Assistant Coach, Liz Feierabend, came to talk to us about stretching and strengthening exercises we should try to incorporate during our training. Most of the exercises are done using your own body weight…very cool. It was surprising to see what I could and could NOT do….kinda funny considering how much training I have done over the past 3 years. I guess my work is never done….but I think I knew that already. :o) If you are interested in giving it a “go” let me know and I will send you the exersices!!!!

After our clinic, to the POOL we went all 50+ of us. Gunderson has a very nice pool…and not too toxic smelling (chlorine). We swam for about an hour…totaling close .75mi!!! I was very proud of that when we were done. During our swim workout we did various drills to help with kicking, breathing, and our stroke….you know all the things that keep you from drowning. I didn’t drown!!

As I have mentioned before, I believe, there are 3 groups we divide into at times based on our experience/endurance levels – Age, Elite, or Pro. When it comes to the bike, I am still feeling a bit less than confident, so I went with the “Age” group. Those of us who chose this group were split in half to do a short clinic, before riding 10mi. Yay mileage!!! The other 2 groups had left already and were riding 14-16mi….bye Brian. The drills during the clinic were great – stopping and unclipping, handling the bike in a turn, practicing using one hand while grabbing water, etc. These are the things beginner riders have trouble with and rightly so. I would say the drills took about 45min. Finally, once we were done we headed out for our ride…..we got 1mile and had to turn around because we ran out of time. WTF!!! Needless to say I was a little bummed. I really wanted to ride longer and work on getting more comfortable on the bike. Oh well, next time…..at least we did the drills and I got some basic practice.

Week 2 complete….no drowning & no falling of the bike…SUCCESS!!!

Fundraising Website: http://pages.teamintraining.org/sj/wildtri11/dzlatunich

Tri Team has begun.......

So as it turns out the title of my blog doesn't quite fit my task this training season. I have joined the TNT triathlon team!!! I decided after 3 years & 7 seasons with my beloved Run team, I needed a new challenge. With this challenge comes not only the opportunity to train for and participate in my first triathlon, but to achieve this challenge with Brian too. Together we will be able to support one another at trainings, understand why exhaustion strikes mid afternoons on Saturdays, grow stronger as a couple and share in the accomplishments when we are done. We have never trained on a team together, so there will be some trial and error, but much fun will be had by all!!!

Tri team training officially started this past Saturday at the early morning hour of 7:30am. We met at Burgess Park in Menlo Park to embark on a morning of swimming and biking. Needless to say...I was SUPER nervous. I haven’t swam laps in years....and quite possibly never, so while I knew I wouldn't drown I didn't want to make a complete fool of myself either. Additionally, I can ride a mountain bike without a problem...now add clip in petals, a road bike with skinny tires, and the fear of falling down & getting hurt. My spin class has clip in petals and I have clip in shoes...works GREAT...the bike doesn't move!!!

Ok, so first up...swimming. They had us break into groups based on our abilities, Age, Elite, or Pro. Age is for people who don't know how to swim, haven't swum in a long time, can’t do the freestyle stroke, etc. Elite is for those who can swim but need some fine tuning. Pro is for those who were/are on a swim team, in a Master swim program etc. After hearing the options I wavered for a second between the Age and Elite groups...until I found out who was coaching the Age group. Caroline!!! I have heard nothing but great things about her and her coaching, that having her help me was the deciding factor. Age group I went! She was great....all the people in my group truly had unique challenges. I think overall I could swim the most efficient out of the four of us, but my stroke needs HELP. Caroline had us doing various drills and techniques to help us improve our knowledge of how the stroke is suppose to 'feel' and what kicking is suppose to look like. It was a bit comical at times. 40 minutes later we were out of the pool and changing to go on our first team ride, YIKES!!

Lesson One: When you think you are organized, think again. I need to rethink how I pack my bag for the days events. What a disaster I had. I brought two bags, one swim and one bike… and couldn't find anything.

After changing from our swimsuits into bike gear, we all met out on the grass field for a quick Biking 101 meeting. The coaches went over road etiquette, safety, proper alignment on your bike, and mileage. My mentor, Rich, knew how nervous I was and offered to ride with me after we made sure my bike was good to go. I needed to get the seat adjusted and practice riding on the grass to make sure I could get in and out of the petals comfortably. Once all of that was taken care of all the other groups had already left and it was just me & Rich. We set off and he led the way. We were riding 10miles out and back through Menlo Park into Palo Alto. All was going fabulously...I was clipping in and out of the petals without problem, traffic wasn't too heavy, and the weather was crisp & clear. Then we reached the intersection of Sand Hill Rd., Alameda de las Pulgas & Juniperro Serra. For those who know this intersection, my heart was pounding out of my chest with fear!!! We were making a left onto Junierro Serra from Alameda and in order to do that, you have to merge with the cars in the turn lane. Well, there was a truck that I believe thought I was going to cross over in front of him and decided to SLAM on his brakes almost causing me to crash into his rear bumper & fall....but I didn't, PHEW!! I did get a bit unsteady (remember I am clipped in), but regained my balance and all was good. We finished our ride and made it back safely. Unfortunately because I was the last one out, I was also the last one back...which I don't think has ever happened to me unless I was sweeping a course as a Run captain. SO, I missed the announcements and no photos were taken of me. :o(

Overall...my first training day was FANtastic!!! I am eager to learn more, get better, and NOT be last again. :o)

Stay tuned....track practice coming up!

Fundraising Website: http://pages.teamintraining.org/sj/kingtri11/dzlatunich