The Opposite of Tapering

I really, truly have wanted to blog.

It just hasn’t been happening. Even reading other’s blogs has been hard to fit in.

I am not sure why.

Well maybe I do.

Training has definitely kicked up a notch.

And is going well, sometimes surprising well.

I had my fastest 50 mile bike split thanks to trying to keep up with TRIgirl KB this weekend (though I still got dropped a few times while she was going an easy pace).

And a “very slowly getting back on track” run thanks to striving to pace with TRIgirl BL last week.

And a third Blue Ridge ride that makes me think I’ve made peace with a few more (not all) hills thanks to Coach B.

And a bunch of solid swims thanks to Ironwoman Canada - who even moved me into the fast Guppy lane (just for one day) last Monday.

And other great recent workouts with TRIgirls DL, MW and TRIDi. Well, when my flat tires did not plague our outings, anyway.

With the extra training hours, I find the need – the absolute need – to sleep more. Naps and early bedtimes have become very common.

And eat more. I’ve heard about others waking up in the middle of the night starving. Last night, my stomach grumbling totally won over – and I found myself eating cucumber salad (thinking of TRIgirl CD in Lake Placid) at 1:00 in the morning.

So between training, sleeping and eating more – things have been a bit…squeezed.

I think I will go take a nap.

A Confession

Generally speaking, I really do enjoy training.

The stress dissolving from my body during a long run. The joy of cruising rural roads with Patriot Sangria and my riding buddies. The glide through the pool as my arms and legs cut through the water.

But, every once in awhile, the real reason that motivates me to squeeze in a long scheduled workout is less about adrenalin, endorphins or even an approaching race...

and more about calorie burning.

For as long as I can remember, food and I have had a tenuous relationship. You know those kids – the lanky, skinny ones that can eat a three course dinner and then find themselves hungry for their first dessert an hour later?

Well, that was never me. I was the chubby third grader, the calorie counting sixth grader, the skip breakfast and lunch teenager. Along the way, there have been a few relative “thinner” stages, which always involved strict dieting and a moderate exercise plan. The last one occurred about two years ago when I lost 17 pounds. Still not skinny (nor close), but achieving a degree of acceptance with the scale and my body.

Imagine my joy during last year’s training for two half IMs and IMFL – when I could actually EAT with freedom, without guilt – and maintain my weight. Wow, three solid meals a day, sometimes second helpings, sometimes, even, gasp, dessert! Ooooh, a weekend party after a mega workout session? Awesome! Make room as I park myself at that buffet table!

In the back of my mind, I fear how easily it could all slip away. If the workouts slow down, either the pounds will creep on or the calorie nazi will need to be resuscitated.

So for now, if the consequence of skipping a workout is forgoing that bleu cheese topped filet, crusty bread and cabernet...

I’m grabbing my gym bag and heading out the door.

Not A Diet, But...

Ironwoman Canada had the nerve to leave her guppies and masters students for a whole month to train in Colorado because she was preparing for one of her biggest races of the year - Ironman Lake Placid. Hmph. We plugged along without her on Monday mornings, but it was wonderful to see her again this week - during her brief hiatus home before she leaves for Lake Placid this weekend.

And, boy, is she lean and in top condition. She looks like she will be kickin' some butt on July 22nd.

Which motivated me a bit to take a look at my diet. These past few months I've been eating way more than ever - because I can. A welcome relief from the constant calorie counting and food restrictions I've obsessed about my entire life until this Ironman training. The TRIgirl nutritional clinics have reinforced the idea that this is not the time for deprivation. But in retrospect, did I really need the extra side of cheese at lunch - or the second helping of whatever at dinner because I've been able to get away with it? Would it have hurt to eat a little more consciously?

So, for the past few days anyway, I've been trying to break my gluttony, gleeful, hand rubbing habit of wolfing down whatever looks tempting. I don't know if I'll lose any weight - and I've come to terms with the current number on the scale. Just a few small changes that could lead to losing some fat and gaining some lean muscle mass.

And I'm putting the disclaimer out there now - I'll still be in complete denial about any reports about the wasted calories from wine.

Pass the...Gu?

I just hung up the phone after catching up with my sister-in-law. She asked about my training and I was telling her that one of the biggest benefits of the work-train-eat-sleep mantra I've been living is the ability to eat more with less guilt and worry. Then I started to share all the indulgent foods I've been stuffing my face with on a daily basis - ice cream, chocolate candy, donuts, deep fried everything, triple cheeseburgers, slabs of butter...

Oh wait.

That isn't what I said.

Gu, shot blocks, sports beans, bagels, bananas, smoothies, V8, fruit salad, cheese, Gatorade - and least we forget, my just arrived package of Accelerade and Endurox.

Listening to myself, I thought, well that doesn't sound all that exciting.