A Year in Review: 2013 – Part I

Posted on December 31, 2013 by kmichaud87

Since today is the last day of 2013 I should probably start my Year in Review posts. Hmm… I’ll keep this one to more of the highlights and photos. But, 2013 was a good year. It started off a bit rough, but ended with many good things happening. I can’t complain.

January

January was a month of ups and downs. I just finished my MPH degree in December and began my job search. Some decisions made by my boss at work made me extremely stressed since I wasn’t sure I was going to have a job. This caused me become sick often, which hindered a lot of my tri training, which began on the 1st of the year. Things at the gym were also unusually slow so professionally and financially I was stressed. However, I got my degree in the mail so it made things more real!

February

Picking the pace up!

I ran the annual Mid-Winter Classic 10-Miler again. It went way better than my disaster of 2012 race where I ran sick and came really close to DNFing. However, I still treated the day more of a training run than anything because I was learning I lost all my running aerobic fitness over my Fall running hiatus due to plantar fasciitis. I also learned important lessons in time management. Working three jobs and training for an Ironman is not fun or easy to do.

March

My mother, my sister and I (1989)

Azul and I celebrated our One Year anniversary. I love that bike! I also celebrated the 4 year anniversary of my mother passing, which is never easy to do. I miss her everyday.

April

Done!

I started April off with a bang! I ran the Race the Runways Half-Marathon again, this time as a training run. It was insanely cold and windy, but I had great company throughout the race. The next day I developed a 102 fever and was out for a couple of days. Go figure! Towards the end of the month I began to develop a bit of a twinge in my right knee. I also went to the USAT Level One Coaching clinic and became a certified coach!

May

Tammy, Myself, Marisa, and Beth – all taking home hardware after a great race!

That twinge in my right knee developed into full-fledge IT-Band issues that plagued me for the rest of the summer. I managed to race the PolarBear Tri… barely. Miraculously, I placed 3rd in my age group.

June

Okay, not from my rides this week... but from the Patriot Hald Aquabike

Patriot Half Aquabike

My run training was extremely limited. I saw my chiropractor at least once a week to help heal my IT-Band issues. I dropped down from the Half-Ironman to the Half Aqua Bike at the Patriot Half. I had a good day, pacing myself like I would at Lake Placid. However, I almost ran over both turkeys and geese on the bike.

July

I became an Ironman! I celebrated yet another epic 4th of July with my favorite family and began my final build to the big day. My Ironman day went as planned. My knee held out to mile 18ish of the run before I was forced to walk the rest of the way, but I finished my goal, and that was to become an Ironman.

August

Enjoying a day at the beach

August was a recovery month. I spent a lot of time with friends and family. Towards the end of the month I began running again slowly just to rebuild my horrible running fitness. I had several promising job interviews. I also left my job at the gym I was working at to go off on my own to start my own business.

September

An example of pubis symphysis seperation - clearly an extreme case (Source)

An example of pubis symphysis separation – clearly an extreme case (Source)

I finally got offered a job! A great deal of stress was lifted off of me. I continued running easily until my pelvis decided to twist itself again. Awesome. I then began another running hiatus and began my yoga addiction.

October

Hot Yoga Time!

I became addicted to hot yoga and it was fabulous. I saw my chiropractor at least once a week to convince my pelvis not to split into two. I was happy as a clam at my new job and I joined the Junior League of Portland, Maine.

November

One of my favorite quotes of the year!

I continued with my yoga binge, loving every minute of it. I was slowly cleared to return to “normal” training. I mostly rode my bike, but ran a few times. It hurt.

December

Skiing at Shawnee Peak

I skied for the first time since my mother died almost five years ago with a friend. More to come of this in the next week or so. I’ve slowly been building my aerobic base again, mostly through cycling.

~ Happy Training and Happy 2014!!

Welcome to the Taper!

Posted on July 19, 2013 by kmichaud87

Sooo… taper for Ironman Lake Placid began on Monday! Wahoo! It’s almost here…

At the lake…

As in 9 days!!! (Insert OMG I’m shitty my pants face)

Surprisingly, I’m not super nervous at the moment. I know come next week when I start packing for the big day things will start to set in and the butterflies will begin their high dives in my tummy.

Many people have asked me what my time goal is. Well, I don’t have one. Okay, maybe I do have a secret time goal and no, I will not tell you. I had a good time goal back in January when I began base training, but all bets were off when my knee/IT-band/Hip issues flared up in early May. Honestly, I wasn’t even sure I was going to make it to race day in one piece.

A lot of people told me I should stop training and not race. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? (Have you met me? I’m one of the most stubborn people you’ll meet.) Yes, these people were not tri people. Most of my non-triathlon friends think that I’m crazy for swim, bike, and running 140.6 miles on July 28th in Lake Placid, NY. Yes, I might agree with them. Only slightly though.

I knew the beginning of last year when I began training with the goal to become more competitive in my age group and competing at the 70.3 distance that the Ironman was in my future. It’s been a long journey with a lot of ups and downs, but in the end, I know that it will be worth it. I can’t wait to hear Mike Reilly tell me I’m an Ironman. I don’t care if I finish sub-12 (haha, in my dreams!) or 16:59. This race is just to finish and finish with a smile. (and not in the medical tent)

And then party my behind off afterwards! 🙂

I LOVE training. I love triathlons. I love being active. But, I know physically and mentally I need a bit of a break. I miss my friends. And I miss my poor neglected dog.

Tough life huh?

Other than that, I’m ready to race! Azul (my tri bike) had her race tune-up yesterday. She’s a thing of beauty at the moment. New tires, new cassette (decided to put on a 11-28 for IMLP), and a new chain. Let’s see how long this lasts…

I got in a good open water swim earlier this week and will finish up with a couple long (like 2 hours now!) ride this weekend. My running is finally coming along. I’ve been running with a new friend lately and he’s motivating me to run fast, which hasn’t occurred since May. I know my marathon at IMLP is probably going to be a slow crawl. If I could finish under 5 hours it would be a miracle! My goal is to run as far and long as I can until the knee decides she is done for the day and then continue with a run/walk method. Maybe some crawling too… hmmm, I think I’ll put knee pads in my special needs bag.

Story of my life…

In other news, I am number 552 for the day! So for all you at home, you can track me via the Ironman website and send me good vibes throughout!

~ Happy Training!

I Lost my Mojo…

Posted on July 12, 2013 by kmichaud87

With less than 30 days until Ironman Lake Placid, I managed to lose my mojo…

No bueno. As of today, Ironman Lake Placid is 16 days away. Holy shit! (commence anxiety attack)

Build was going good. Week one was solid. Week two was good. Then week three was the holiday week. It was a good week, but it was rather lackluster compared to what it should have been.

I spent most of the week at my best friend’s camp on Little Ossipee Lake, which is really one of the highlights of my year. Fourth of July is my favorite holiday. Okay, maybe it’s tied for Thanksgiving. I love me some turkey! 🙂

Last Monday night I did 4400 yards in the pool and it went really freaking well. I swam partly with a couple local swim team girls that definitely kept me working and then partly on my own. I haven’t swam that many yards in one sitting since high school and I was pleased how well it went.

Tuesday night was spent at camp. I got in a short 3 mile jaunt before it was booze cruise time. We took a quick cruise around the lake then J’s mom decided she was going to drive the boat until to boys and J’s sister arrived. And, by driving I mean it was more or less gunning the boat and circling around. I was definitely hanging onto my beer with white knuckles! Once everyone arrived it was back to the normal booze cruise speed and the rest of the night was history… and I ended up staying up way past my bedtime!

A borrowed picture of one of my favorite places!

Wednesday I got up early to swim before all the boat came out of their boathouses. Somehow my wetsuit has gone missing so I had to swim sans wetsuit. I didn’t swim very long, but enough to get comfortable in open water again. Later that morning I got a call from a woman I had interviewed in early June for a position that I really really wanted. I didn’t get the job. I was second choice, which is bittersweet. She gave me some great feedback and said that she believes that I will go far in the public health field, but I just need more experience. No shit. That’s my problem, trying to find a job to get said experience. That news definitely set the tone for the day for me and really the week.

I got a good pep talk from the girls and tried putting the bad news aside and focused on having some fun. I managed to get out on my bike for an easy 20+ mile ride and then ran home to grab my dog to bring her to the lake. Reagan LOVES to swim. Plus, she makes me feel better. Except when she decides that she needs to sleep with me on the tiny little cot I had! At least this year I didn’t have to carry her down the stairs like the previous years. My dog has some sort of irrational fear of wooden stairs and refuses to go down them unless I carry her. A 50 pound hairball gets quite heavy at times. I can’t judge her too much though, I have an irrational fear of bologna…. don’t ask…

Some of my favorite girls!

Thursday. Happy 4th of July! It was a perfect day. Sunny and hot (unlike most of the Maine summer weather thus far). I got up early and headed out for my long run. I attempted to run around the lake, which I estimated would be about 10 miles. However, I’m a bit directionally challenged and got lost. The first 90 minutes went well. Knee was holding up well and I was content with my slow ass pace. I got honked at by some creeping old man. Awesome. The rest of the morning was spent drinking mimosas by the lake until everyone rolled in. Lots of adult beverages were consumed along with lots of food that I probably shouldn’t have eaten. Oh well. So worth it.

I ended up missing a couple of key workouts. However, at the end of the day I don’t think it’s going to matter too much. The real work as been done. Ironman athletes are truly made in the winter. All those long boring miles on the trainer and treadmill build the endurance you need for race day. My training has not gone as planned. Many people have asked me about my estimated finishing time. When I first started training back in January I had an idea of what time I wanted to finish by. However, with all the roadblocks I have hit over the course of the past 7 months, I just want to finish (preferably in one piece).

Oh yea, I rode my bike 109 miles on Sunday… The turn around point of my ride

This week is going much better training wise. I’m back on the ball. Mentally I’m in a much better place too. Now that I’ve had a week to digest the fact that I didn’t get the job I really wanted, I’m beginning to think about what’s next. I started to put a plan in place and I definitely feeling good about it. The mojo is coming back! Time to get this Ironman thing done with! 🙂

~ Happy Training!

Ironman Build Week One Recap

Posted on June 25, 2013 by kmichaud87

Last week was my first build week for Ironman Lake Placid! T-5 weeks to ago till the big day! The reality of the event is starting to kick in. On July 28th I will be embarking on a 140.6 mile journey of swimming, biking, and running in order to hear Mike Reilly tell me I’m an Ironman!

This past week was a big week for me and overall it went well. My swimming is coming together nicely. My yardage has increased and I’m feeling stronger than ever in the water. However, I have noticed that my left arm is weaker than my right when pulling. Something to work on in the off-season I suppose. I just hope this new strength and speed will translate to the open water. I was supposed to swim in the lake on Sunday, but severe thunderstorms changed that plan. I’m hoping the weather will be a bit more cooperative this week.

Quality time in the pool!

My bike fitness has seemed to have suffered over my Fall injury break from running and cycling. I feel good on the bike and my handling skills have definitely improved, but I lost a lot of power. I know this is my first Ironman and I shouldn’t get too caught up in finishing in x amount of hours, but in my head I have this time frame for the bike and I know that I’m not going to head it. The best I can do right now is to believe in my coach’s plan and follow the pacing. I had a good lesson on Saturday’s 90 mile ride on pacing. The first 21 miles of my route hit some pretty big hills and I trashed my legs a bit pedalling up them. It showed me the importance of pacing, especially at the beginning. 112 miles is a long way…

Okay, not from my rides this week… but from the Patriot Hald Aquabike

My running is so/so at the moment, which is a total bummer. Last year I improved leaps and bounds in my running capability and I was hoping that it would translate over to this year. I took all Fall off from running to heal my hip and plantar fasciitis issues to come back with more hip and this time IT band issues. I guess it’s my body’s way of telling me next year is going to be an “off-year” to fix my muscle imbalance and build aerobic endurance.

I ran twice this week. Wednesday I did 45 minutes of zone 2 running. The first 20 minutes were relatively pain-free and then the IT Band issues started to flare up a bit. However, I can run through it at this point. Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing remains to be the question. Thursday I had a 30 minute T-run off the bike and had an awesome run! No pain and I was actually able to run a sub-10 minute mile in zone 2 and pain-free. Still way slower than I should be, but it’s a victory none the less.

Friday night dinner!

One thing that I have noticed is my appetite has picked up. My lunches have now turned into 5-course meals. So much so that my supervisor had to comment about it. However, despite the fact that I want to eat everything in sight, I have managed to lose several pounds. Yay! This coming week is sure to be a big week in terms of running and cycling. Thursday night I have a 4 hour brick workout. I just hope the weather is good because I certainly don’t want to be stuck riding in the middle of a thunderstorm! I also have a 2 hour run on Saturday. That will be the real test…

Weekly Totals:

Swim: 2:10 (6943 yards)

Bike: 8:25 (120 miles)

Run: 1:50 (9.41 miles)

Strength, Core & Yoga: 1 hour

~ Happy Training!

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