Granite Games, training, and 5 MUSCLE UPS PR

What a month and half leading up to the Granite Games!!! Tri season was over early September and then it was some serious training for about a month leading up to the big CF comp. I knew I wouldn't be able to get much strength in such a short period of time, but I worked hard on some skills and tough WOD's to get me ready mentally and physically.

I was feeling good and a little tired after doing a few tough HERO wods in the weeks leading up to the competition along with a 6 girl WOD challenge that was posted on the CF page. Rich Fronning challenge, so of course I had to do it =) Kurbs also followed along! We did a 5K before,  the Camp Odayin annual run that my work sponsors. I did only 14 sec slower then last year, so I was pretty happy considering all my non running. We then went to Kingfield and did this crazy 6 girl wod! It was great, tough, but good =)

So granite games...what an experience. First off I'll definetly be back next year, I was happy with how I did, I definetly have things to work on, and need to focus on strenght and Oly lifts. It was nice of Kim to have us say at her aunt's place, it was nice and cozy and we saved some money so a win win.

Day One Snatch Ladder:

I was not looking forward to this one. When I head about the first event a week prior I got sick to my stomach as it was not specified in the movement standards that snatch would be somethign we'd have to do in the RX division, but knowing CF you have to be ready for anything, so the week before I practiced snatch every day, and actually went from a 90lb PR to a 100lbs, so I was happy! Sadly when competiton came I was way way to nervous and not warmed up so I missed both attempts at 98lbs, and just did 14 deadlifts to get some points. I was 39th out of 41 for that day...

Day 2 Run/Thrusters, Air Dyne and 8min AMRAP, much better!!

I was excited to workout. The first day was over and I was honesly happy to get out and finally do some work. Man the run/thrusters wod hurt. I had tried that one earlier in the week and actually did 15 sec faster in the comp, but the weight felt so heavy...The wod was 180 run 10 thrustesr at 95lbs, all the way down to 2 with no run at the end, got 6:58 for that one, 21st out of 41 women.

Later that day was the airdyne, "the devils ride". I did a little worse on this one then when I tried it earlier at Kingfield, but felt the best in this event. We had a 5 min transition and then it was into 100 DU, 50 swings, and 25 muscle ups. Yup muscle ups!! I had only done one muscle up to date and got 5 in the WOD! I strung two in a row during warm ups so I was just hoping to get one or two in the WOD. I really felt strong after the Airdyne, and felt like I had a lot of energy going right into another WOD (the endurance side payed off). After Sat I was in 11th place for RX, top 12 made it to the Final WOD on Sunday. I  got 4th in the airdyne 2:37 for 50 cals and 88 calories for 5min, and then 8th for the 8min WOD.

Day 3 BRUTAL, TTB, then 3 rounds of 15 DL, and 15 BS at 123lbs.

Wow this one hurt bad...time cap was 12min, and I got through the last round with 6 more BS to go. I was really dying...Had trouble cleaning the weight, and the combination of movments and yestedays WOD's kind of killed me.

Sadly I didn't make it into the Final WOD, got 14th place after the Sunday AM WOD. I was sad of course because the last one was a chipper. We came home and did it though in the garage gym with a few modications with G and Kurbs =)

The Final WOD was

500 Row we ran at home21 15 9
Wall balls did plate thrusters 25lbs
Pull ups

15 12 9
G2O 85lbs
Pistols

9 6 3
Burpee Box jumps
KB OHS 16kg

3 2 1
Clean 125, dropped to 115 after 3 reps for S2O
S2O
27:30 was dead!!




Key takeaway: It was very tough to get used to no warm up right before the WOD's. The weights were not easy for me, so when I would warm up it would be fine, but then we'd get corraled 20min before and then doing the WOD "cold" so to speak was tough getting used to. I'd say it got better as the day went on Sat and better Sunday but definetly a change and different experience.

I loved every min of the weeeknd, a lot of Twolf peeps did the competition and dominated per usual. Danny also did awesome from Kingfield. The experience was great, and felt like a high end competition, espeically since there were a few Games and a bunch of Regionals athletes there. Truly inspired and humbled!

Next up, get the "growth" out of my knee and hopefully be ready for a partner competition in Nov and then for sure FreezeFest in Feb!!

YW sprint tri, Hyvee, and end of the season thoughts for 2013 Tri Season

 We look so happy there ha-------->

 Door Finish, ouch!

                                              Unofficial Hyvee time.

                                               Cool shot of Door, running into finish!

It's been a while since I've blogged, but I wanted to write a big and long post about the two last races of the season and some thoughts and feelings about this summers racing and thoughts for fall, winter and next year...

YW was a great race once again. I truly love this race, and hope to keep doing it. It's a different type of atmosphere, but competitive at the same time, and so close to home, it's just a great time.
I didn't PR, but I wasn't really expecting to this year. With my ongoing knee issue and ankle surgery in March, and this being my second race of the season I didn't have super high expectations, but wanted to go hard and have fun! Not too much excitement in this race or things going out of the ordinary besides my swim...My goggles got water in them three different times and my breathing was very chaotic. I didn't get into a groove until the first turn, and with it being such a short swim that was not a good thing. The bike was pretty good, but my legs were feeling heavy and a little tired, likely due to me doing the BHO WOD 2 the day before (or re doing). The run was actually pretty good, hard, but I felt like I could push it. Overall I didn't place as too well and my time was about 3 min off from 2012, but I wasn't overly disappointed and was glad that my run was only about 10 sec off from last years pace when I did WAY more running.

Results
8:42 1:45 1:21
42:42 21.8 1:08
20:42 6:40 pace
Total Time 1:14:32 7th overall

Hyvee just happened this past weekend, Labor Day weekend. I was gone in Seattle the weekend before for a fun vacation. I was pretty active there with CF and some running. The knee issue I've been having is turning out to be something more then just runners knee. I am not sure yet what exactly, but it seems like a scar tissue or soft tissue mass of some sort that I might need surgery on AGAIN....It's been a bit disappointing and frustrating with the surgeries, but then again what can you do?? If this issue in my knee is ultimately resolved with removing something I guess I'll be happy to maybe say good bye to knee pain after a long long time of this ongoing "bug"...

Hyvee was a fun race, overall I think I felt like I had a good race, although once again about 2min off PR from last year. When it comes to how I felt I would say I tried my best and felt pretty good during the whole race. Racing is always tough, but I was in a good mental state and tried to have fun for the most part. The swim was good, I was pretty much last out of the 20 Elite Women in the Championship race, but my time was about 10 sec off the last year and I tried to focus on my stroke and sighting more. The bike was very very windy this year and there were a lot of false flats. I got the exact same average this year though, was only about 15 sec slower compared to last year. Then run was where I lost the most time about 2 plus min, but I went sub 7:30 pace which I was pretty happy with.
The biggest difference in this race this year was how long the transitions took, but that was the same for everyone but it was kind of crazy to see the transitions from last year being almost a min or more faster...
Kurbs did very well considering her injury, she hasdn't run in a month and didn't do much swimming and some biking and still managed to kick booty!! I liked staying an extra night and celebrating that day with Gabe and Kurbs =) Her family came to watch also which was fun. Our hotel wasn't super accommodating though, not sure if we'll stay there again although it was a decent price, Marriot in downtown.

Results
Swim 29:19 1:48 pace
Bike 1:09 21.6
Run 45:11 7:18 pace
2:27.56 16th overall for elite
Lost a lot on transitions too
T1 2:27 T2 2:02

All in all I feel like the season has been "different" this year. I'm not sure if it's being burned out of racing or the combination of having injuries and the nagging knee thing, or the added interest in CF this year, maybe a combo of everything. I'll see where the Fall/Winter and next year takes me. Next up is a competition for CF in Oct (Granite Games), so my focus will shift this way for the month at least. I'm really having a lot of fun doing the CF thing, and I still love to do the tri stuff, just not sure where I'll be next year with racing and such, since it's tough to really focus on both and excel at both, which I've learned in my second year of CF and triathlon =)

Hope to heal up the knee first off, and then go from there...

Door Country Half Ironman 7/21/13 First Tri of the Season!

I can't believe that this was my first tri of the season!! I was having mixed feeling about the race, excited, kinda of out of it with how the season was going, nervous that a half was my first tri of 2013. I kept thinking about how strange this year has been when it comes to training and racing, but tried to keep an open mind and have fun with it. I knew I could get through the race, and I'd done training for it, although my running has been sub par this year with ankle surgery and ongoing knee issues.

We drove up Sat to get to Door Country mid day. The drive was LONG, but fun with Kurbs and Osc in the car =) Kurbs was not able to do the race because of her foot injury but I was glad she still came to cheer!!! We got to packet pick up about 4pm and checked out the race site. Lake Michigan was very pretty and big. The weather was beautiful, nice and cool unlike other years, and little wind. I was getting more excited to do this thing.

We stated at the Best Western Maritime, which was pretty cozy, and ended up eating at a restaurant called Neighborhood right across the street. I had a yummy pork chop and a glass of wine of course =)

Race morning was pretty stress free since we were only about 12miles from the race site. We got there pretty early, about 6:30 for an 8am race start. I got warmed up with Kurbs and Osc and was all ready to go. I liked that the transition didn't close until 15min before the race so I had plenty of time to warm up and get all situated.

SWIM:
The swim was an in water swim due to rocks close to the beach. As soon as the gun went off it was like riding a bike...I wasn't all that nervous but the water was super choppy the whole way and I had a very hard time getting into a breathing or stroke rhythm. The buoys were very well marked which was nice. No major issues in the swim besides the choppy waters making it very difficult to get into a grove. I swallowed a lot of water sighting at one point and had to do a little breast stroke action.

BIKE:
Right after getting in from the swim I noticed that it was raining. I thought to myself, damn! Rain on the bike didn't bother me though, it was a lighter mist, with some heavier rain at times, but no extra wind, and the course itself was nice. The roads were fairly smooth about 90% of the way, and there were just a few rolling hillls but nothing major. I ate three gels and a power bar on the bike, which seemed to work out for me. I think I finally figured out the nutrition for the half on the bike in this race. Only took me about 5 Half Ironman to figure it out.

RUN:
Coming into T2 my feet were feeling cold and numb from the rain, so the first few miles were a little painful but my body felt pretty good. I was doing about 7:30 miles the first 7 miles, but then the hills hit at mile 8 and I died!! 20% grade my glute cramped...I'm not sure what happened to me, maybe I went out too fast, but I was feeling pretty good. The run didn't go as great as I wanted, but the course was a very very tough and hilly one. Thank god the weather was overcast and cool in the low 70's.

I was very happy to finish although a bit disappointed because I was thinking I'd be able to make pull off about a 5 hour time, but with the added pain on the run I came in at about 5:11, no PR but hard to compare not doing this race before.

As a side note a little about Door County...A lot of wineries here and very pretty in Egg Harbor, definitely have to come back and maybe stay an extra day.

Results:
Split Time Pace
Swim 00:39:13.9 0:02:01
T-1 00:01:54.1 0:00:00
Bike 02:43:08.2 20.7
T-2 00:01:06.5 0:00:00
Run 01:46:23.3 0:08:07
Total Time 5:11.46.2 (9th overall Female)
Crazy hard run, and swim very choppy, good bike course though with a few hills)

http://itiming.com/searchable/index.php?results=dcthalf2013

Cancelled Triathlon and an interesting season....Copper Creek 6/23/2013

I was all excited to do my first sorta late season triathlon in Iowa, the Copper Creek sprint tri, but the race ended up being cancelled and instead of a triathlon there was a 5K which we didn't really know about until after we left. It was all sort of bizarre as the day started off really nice, and then crazy weather rolled in. The race was first shortened and then delayed, and then after waiting for an hour and a half and no break in sight we headed out since we had a flight to Alaska that same night. I was really bummed and so was Kurbs, since we both really wanted to get this season started. We drove all the way there ate a good meal, stayed in a nasty motel, and then the race got cancelled. I've never had that happened before, and it was worse in part because we drove all the way there!!! Ug super annoying  but what can ya do...I'm a little worried about my first triathlon being a half, but I know I can get through it at least, just very bizarre and different approach to the season this year.

Apple Duathlon 2013 5/25/13

With some nagging ankle/knee issues I was somewhat hesitant to do this race, but decided to head out to Sartell and see how I felt during warm ups. After doing about a 2 to 3 mile warm up and feeling no real heel pain on the ankle surgery foot I decided to go for it. I didn't remember much about this race expect that there was a huge hill on the run and that I got a PR 5K here last year. I wasn't expecting any PR's this year but was hoping to at least feel strong and not have to DNF due to pain.

There were only 6 of us in the elite wave because most were doing Age Group to Quality for Worlds in August in Canada. Since I knew I was not going to be able to do Worlds this year I kept my Elite wave slot. I knew all the girls in the Elite wave besides one, which was fun. The first run felt pretty good, I came in in 20:26, about a min off from 2012. Transition was fairly smooth. With no issues with cold or rain I was able to use my hands like I wanted to clip and unclip my helmet, which was a real problem last year.

The bike started out really well, but I ended up getting passed by three girls which made me in 5th place compared to the second place I was in after the first run. Suzie was out in front by about a min on the first run, and the rest of the girls were very close together. We made a final turn which lasted for more then 5 miles, and were headed into a pretty good headwind, and that's when I started to feel sluggish and didn't have much energy to push. I panicked and decided to take some fuel in, but the chops I had flew away from me, so then I decided it was gel time. I was pretty frustrated at that time after losing the chops, and the gel didn't taste very well or sit well with me. I was struggling to keep, 17mph, eat and not let the girl who had just passed me get too far away. All of that didn't workout too well...as I was feeling a deep burn in my legs and the wind was not letting down. I was worried about the run with how my legs were feeling those last 6 miles on the bike.

T2 was pretty smooth, but when I started to run the wheels really feel off. I felt like I was crawling and in fact I sort of was. I ended up with a 7:30 pace for the second run which might have been my slowest yet...It was a struggle with that run for whatever reason. I came in at 1:44 with some change and 5th overall, about 3:30 min off from last year, and mostly on the run, especially the second run.

It seemed like most peoples times were about 4 to 5min off from last year, but I'm not sure why. Maybe it was the wind and chilly temps. I thought the weather was way better then Oakdale but of course not ideal for March 25th.

No open water swims yet!!

Trying not to be too negative this season and use this year as a healing/training season.

Results:

5K run 20:26 (6:35)

T10:51

33K 58:52 (20.9)

T20:46 125

5K 23:27 (7:33)

Total 1:44:20 6th overall

Season Opener kind of like the Fishing Opener but more painful....Oakdale Du 2013

It was a cold cold day for the first race, super windy too!! I have done Oakdale a few years in a row and have always singed up for this race pretty early. This year has not only been cold, but I've also had some hiccups with my ankle. After contemplating if I can do this race with my ankle surgery being March 22nd, I decided to go ahead with it, with little run or brick training under my belt.

Unlike last year I started with the correct wave this year. There were only 3 women in the Elite wave this year, most likely due to the weather conditions. The wind was like nothing else I've ever raced in before especially on the bike. I ran the first run feeling pretty good, and not feeling much or any discomfort in my ankle. The bike was a bit of a disaster as I decided that it was too much to mess around with my gloves after the first run, so instead of taking the extra few seconds to put them on I left them off. I knew this was a mistake pretty quickly as winds were 20 to 30 miles per hour and the weather was in the 40's. I was being blown pretty good on the bike, and my hands were so numb that's all I could think about. I got pretty frustrated on the bike with the wind, and very very cold. I couldn't drink any water the whole race also because I was just so cold. After coming in first on the run, I was in 3rd into T2. At that point I was not able to do anything with my hands, so I had a nice guy un-clip my helmet, and then somehow got my shoes on all by myself! The second run was pretty painful also, mostly because I felt out of shape with running and bricks...All different parts of my legs were sore and in pain. Kirk passed me with about a mile to go. I didn't have much in my legs, and it really did feel like the longest 2.5 miles ever. I came in 4th overall, not super happy with the race, about 5:30 slower then last year, and mostly on the bike. The runs were also slower but the majority of time lost was the bike. I guess conditions didn't help and coming off the surgery was also a factor. As I write this a day later I can be a little more realistic with myself and just think...On to the next race, Apple Du...

Results:
51 20:22  6:48 
T10:49   41  
40:36 20.7 
T21:03   59
17:38  7:03
Total Time 1:20:26

Training Hiccops and slowing down in 2013

Who really ever knows what the future holds right? And training obstacles are tough. I recently was challenged physically and mentally with something I never imagined happening, but that's how it usually goes. I had a swollen ankle for a few months and after getting an X-ray and MRI they said I had a benign tumor in my left ankle and needed it removed sooner then later.

This was very inconvenient for a few resason...The CF Open is going on currently and having the surgery meant not finishing all of the workouts. Another reason for inconvenience is the triathlon season coming up and not being able to train like I wanted the weeks before the season wasn't eactly what I had hoped for. I tried to delay the surgery and see what the doctor thought but after a lot of going back and forth, back and forth, and more back and forth and the doctor saying waiting until fall would NOT be a good idea I decided to go through with the surgery on March 22nd 2013. So here I sit typing this up in hopes when I look back on this and hit another bump in the road called life I can see how I coped and got through this rough time. Things can always be worse though. I am in a boot for 7 to 10 days before the sitches come out, once that happens I can start doing stuff!! It's only day 2 and I can hardly wait. I did a short core WOD today with some push ups which made me feel better. It's the little things and the mental games and tricks we play with ourselves that help get through times like this. In a way I feel like this is good for me, slowing down for a little while and focusing my energy on other things I neglect is always a positive, and I'm trying to focus on that. I mostly just don't like being restricted and being not in control of this "thing". But again I think it's maybe good for me to step back and say, hey if this is not in my control then I just have to make the best of what I do have instead of being too busy trying to control things I might not be able to at the moment. This little injury and control applies to many other aspects of my life and I think it's may be good for me to step back now and really slow down.

Everyone has been super super supportive. My family, friends, Gabe have been totally awesome, and I'm very very grateful for that. Otherwise we'll see what the future holds. I haven't been super happy with my own performance in the OPEN, yes I have gotten better, but there are still those movements (100lb snatch), muscle ups, which just hold me back from really separating myself. The team (Timbewolf CrossFit) is doing awesome though, and I've really tried to do my best to get more points for the team in order to qualify for Regionals rather then focusing too much on my own weaknesses. Although I know that if I could have done that muscle up in 13.3 I would have helped the team so much more, ug!!!

Triathlon season is going to happen the question is how much will I lose these next few weeks, I think June and July races are still on, but May will be a big question, which I am ok with. I just hope that pathology reports come back ok and I can move on from this.

Aside from my own issues, Kim has also beeing struggling with an injury in her ankle. She's going through some PT now and seems to be on the right track back, but again the trainign for her has also been subpar compared to last year. I keep thinking, we jsut can't compare last year to this year because every seconds of life is just so different, we just have to adapt and really try to make the best of it with support for others. Gabe also has been battleing a shoulder injury and although it seemed to have gotten better, he's not where he wants to be, so surgery might be in the near future for him.

All in all I think we'll all be ok, it's been nice watching a lot of movies with friends and having more time, but I'm sure I'll be ready to get back into training soon....Actually I already sorta am, but I do admit it's nice not running around with my head cut off day to day...;)

First Brick of 2013 at Balance, PR FRAN and PR 200....SWIM!

Did my first brick at balance on the compu trainer and felt real good!! The compu trainer ride was the IM WI course total time 3hrs and a 5K run after. I was surprised how good I felt during since I haven't done a lot of cardio and have started ramping stuff up the last few weeks before AZ.

On to my PR FRAN at home today 3:55, bam!! Was super happy this was after a 11mile running in the morning.

And lastly, I swam 6 days last week a record for me, and felt the best on Saturday the 6th day. I got a PR 200 hundred at 3:03. All in all it was a good week!!!

FreezeFest, knee issues, and running in 2013 2/6/2013

It's only been a couple months into 2013 and I'm starting to feel like I want to/need to pick up my cardio/training shape. My running has been on the back burner due to my ongoing knee issue, and more recently a swollen ankle. Besides running though I have been trying to get on the bike more this month and swimming a lot since I'm running maybe a day or two if that the last few weeks. I took last week off completely from running, which didn't actually seem that bad, but I do really miss it.

I had a chance to compete in the FreezeFest CF Partner competition a few weeks ago, which was really fun! The event raised money for a little boy who has a medical condition since birth and has had to come to Minnesota for many surgeries and treatments. The proceeds went to the boys parents. The gym I coach at (Timberwolf Crossfit and Crossfit Whitebear) were the main organizer, the event was great.
I got a PR clean at 140, and stayed the same on my snatch at 90lbs...I know I can do more just have to work on technique!! I have noticed a theme with me and technique type exercises or sports, I am just not too great at them, and it doesn't matter how strong you are, if your technique isn't there it does NOT matter. I'm sure that's the case for everyone though, but just shows that practice makes you better, but not perfect since there is always room for improvement.

I've been trying to get in the pool a lot started the crazy swim streak the beginning of this month, and so far so good. I feel like my conditioning is good in the pool, I just need to keep focusing on my TECHNIQUE to get faster and more efficient (there it is again) =)

Some pics from the FreezeFest!

Meet of the Miles 1/14/2013

I've had never done this race, but was excited and had it planned for a few weeks. I was bit nervoius to see where my speed was at with not a whole lot of running at all, but a lot of strenth training and crossfit. The reason for not a lot of running has been my ongoing knee issue...and maybe some needed time to do other things.

So with no real expectations I decided I'd sign up for the 6 to 630mile pace group, but last minute switched to the 545 to 6min group because a lot more of the girls I knew were running in that one. Nordica, Lindsey, Stephanie, all from MN Red. So I thought what the heck I'll be more motivated to stick with them, and if I die trying oh well...Bring on the PAIN!

I warmed up around the 200 meter track for a while, and Gabe and I stood around for a while which made it tough to stay warmed up...Gabe was also doing the meet for the first time. I was excited to see how he'd do knowing that he'd most likely PR since he's also been doing a lot of crossfit and gaining a lot of leg strength. Although also not a lot of distance running for Gabe...

I started off very conservatively and was surprised how decent I felt. With about 4 laps to go I passed up the MN red pace group, but was still running pretty conservative thinking maybve I'd die at the end. My PR mile is a 5:31 from last year in the summer, and today at the meet of the miles I did a 5:47...I was surprised...I know I didn't go 100% and held back a bit, but it was a very strong effort. I think last year I did a 5:43 at an indoor track meet also in January with a lot more running under my belt. So all in all I was happy. I ended up running with Greta also for a 6:34 mile, nice job Greta! And then Gabe also for a 7:26 mile, a PR!!!!

It was a great time, and I definetly want to do that one again next year.

I need to start working on my endurance more...Next up is FreezeFest, an all day CF competition for a charity event, then a triathlon training camp in AZ Feb 28th to March 3rd, and then the CF Open!!!

PS: Started signing up for some races for 2013, thus far Oakdale, Apple, Door Half in July (Kim's first Half, yay!)

Crossfit, Knee Stuff, and more...

It's been an interesting off season thus far...After the marathon and my nagging knee pain all year I decided to go see someone to fix the problem. Unfortunetly the problem is not completely gone, but it's a little better. I also started doing CF ALOT! It's been a lot of fun, and I'm definetly getting stronger, but my running/endurance has suffered a bit. I know it's early in the season, but I'm just not used to being out of shape when it comes to endurance stuff, so it's difinely a change for me.

On a CF note though I have set a few PR's on the deadlift at 255, clean 135, bench press 130x3 as well as pull ups at 30+...My approach for the season is to see how I do in the Open for CF in March and then go from there. If I or the Twolf can qualify for Regional then my focus will go that way, but if not, then I can still get serious about racing tri's. I have already registered for a few big races for 2013, once of them being Age Group Nationals in Milwakee in August, which Kurbs and I will hopefully be going to.

Also excited to do my first ever tri camp in Arizona at the end of Feb...and that's all for now!