Skip to main content

Bloomsday--A breakthrough

I had one of those days last Sunday where everything felt good and nothing could hold me back. Yet I went into Bloomsday uncertain about how I'd handle such a difficult course when I considered the fact that I'd pushed myself through a challenging brick workout the day prior. After 4 hours on the bike and a fast 30 minute transition run, I returned to the car feeling completely spent. Even the serenity of Medical Lake couldn't distract my mind from taking inventory of what little I had left.

The greater part of Saturday afternoon involved downing bottle after bottle of PhD Nutrition. Flavored and unflavored. Smoothie and drink. I drank it.

Sunday morning presented itself in the way of beautiful sunshine and a calm breeze. I didn't quite know if I'd replenished everything I burned up the day prior, but the short warm up run to the Second Seed starting corral felt relatively good.

We had about 15 minutes before the 9 o'clock starting gun. I looked down at my purple Motion IIIs by Newton, thankful for the way they felt and, in races past, have helped me run faster and more efficiently. I sported my new Big Sexy running singlet for the first time, thankful the day felt warm enough to wear nothing more than that and shorts.

When the gun went off, the mass of people in front of me started to move forward, cuing me to follow. Yet there existed a tremendous amount of people that even starting in Second Seed couldn't help me avoid. My first mile felt slightly labored, perhaps more mentally fatiguing in an effort to weave through other runners. Mile 2 involved a significant downhill, which made it fast. Uphills followed. I've learned to love the hills, thankful for the hill repeats I'd done each week for about a month leading up to this race.

It seemed as though I gained speed and momentum with each person I passed. Three hills down meant I just had Doomsday to scale. I couldn't remember at the time what my hill repeats up Doomsday had taken me in the weeks prior. All I could think about was how much faster I felt I ran compared to the times I'd struggled up it on Thursdays after work.

In years past, I'd learned I always felt my worst in the mile following Doomsday. So imagine my surprise when I saw that my split for mile 6 was faster than that for mile 1! In an instant, I suddenly had fuel, pure motivation, determination, whatEVER, to make me run faster than I ever have at Bloomsday.

My goal for the last two years has been to run a sub-50 minute Bloomsday. I succeeded this year with a time of 47:49 to place 18th in my age group (behind many women from countries I can't pronounce.)

I sit on the couch, one week later, struggling to balance the triumph of a breakthrough performance with the onset of left piriformis pain that suddenly reared its ugly head on Thursday after an easy run. Of course, my psyche currently feels relatively frail when I consider I'd like to run Bay to Breakers with my family next weekend. Perhaps my biggest concern revolves around the fact Troika is just three weeks away. I can only pray massage, trigger point, and heat calm my throbbing butt cheek.




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

My opinion...For what it's worth

My first Half Ironman 70.3 turned into Boise 29.3. I may be the only one to say that I respect the officials' judgment call on this one, because apparently, a few of my triathlete comrades lack sufficient brains themselves. The comments I'm reading on Facebook leave me pretty disturbed. Let me just put this out there: I entered this sport because it looked tough and challenging. It pushes anyone who enters these races to their ultimate limits and requires a demanding amount of time to complete the training necessary to succeed. I entered this sport because of the people. Healthy, smart, fit, inspiring, motivating. I can't think of a single person who has questioned my ability to participate in this sport. I entered this sport because anyone can do it. I passed people younger and older than me, some as old as 74. I watched one woman hobble along the run course, surely just on her first lap. She looked like her knees were going to cave in. Yet she was running. I did not ent
2 comments
Read more

How strong are your feet?

Who knew my first post in 2020 would be about the work I'm doing on my feet. Not just any work, but the work required to make them strong enough to propel me to faster running paces, the work to make them durable enough to heal up some old injuries and prevent new ones from taking hold. Jay Dicharry , a Physical Therapist and researcher in Bend, OR, says that almost all ankle, foot, and lower leg injuries can be attributed to faulty foot mechanics and a weak foot core.  I listened to him speak on a podcast called Trail Runner Nation today, and all the advice he provided me during my two personal visits with him last year rushed back in a torrent of memory. It seems fitting that his reminders would hit me like a hammer over my head when I consider the nagging foot pain that has cropped up again over the past couple of weeks. I'm going back to my toe yoga, short foot exercises, and working hard to build up the strength in my foot intrinsic muscles. Meanwhile, here's a b
Post a Comment
Read more

It is finished

As with everything in life, nothing stays the same. Change is inevitable. It does not always mean it's a turn for the worst. In my case, I think this is a change for the better. As of 2021, I am closing the door on racing triathlon and rekindling my investment in the doctorate degree I worked for in Physical therapy. Thankfully, making money again has felt much more productive than losing it in the pursuit of professional triathlon. Thankfully, my body has responded positively to a slackened training schedule. Thankfully, my head is clearer for the release in pressure to perform.  I needed a new pursuit, a new challenge, a new endeavor. Raising and showing my dogs has helped me slow down, challenged me to learn and communicate differently, and taught me that physical fitness can still be achieved to a lesser, healthier extent.  It has worked so well that I'm also going back to doing what I loved to do 10 years ago. Pursuing a more simple lifestyle (outside of work, of course) a
Post a Comment
Read more