Down for the count...i.e. how I am slowly falling apart

Lesson 1: Do not get yourself stuck on a ride with no shade in 90 degree weather and your only way out is up, up, up.

Lesson 2: Liz makes bad decisions

These were the two crucial lessons that I took from my Saturday ride.

Saturday was going to be my great return to riding after 3 weeks of not being able to do anything due to life and the hectic-ness that has become its norm. I was super excited to do the three bears ride- one that I hadn't done since way back when in June when it was just me and Erica riding. I had even planned my whole weekend so that all the other things that I needed to do this weekend could happen around this ride.

So I get up and over to Berkeley with all my gear ready and plenty of water (it was to be in the 90's down near the reservoirs). We start up Spruce and start to head into Wildcat Canyon and oh no... my left knee starts to hurt. At this point it could just be warming up pain due to the fact I hadn't done this in a while.

Ok, so I keep going. The pain moves from being localized in the back two tendons behind my knee and starts to creep up the inside of my left leg. Probably not great- luckily we all stop at Inspiration Point to assess.

Inspiration Point is the point of no return on this ride. I either: A. go down Wildcat and do this whole damn ride (37 miles) or B. jump ship and head home at this point.

Of course a normal and sane (I have to add sane here- it is crucial) would have said it was time to pack it in and go home since this was a particularly hilly ride. Of course, see Lesson 2 from above, Liz makes terrible decisions.

So of course I decide to "just go down Wildcat Canyon" and then "see how I feel". Some how this ended me half way through the ride in lots-o-pain thinking who the HELL can I call to come and pick me up?! Of course, even in the day and age of ubiquitous cell phone usage, I managed to have a group of car-people who collectively don't pick up their cell phones at that exact moment. I was even hoping that a mini-van filled with a happy, non-deranged family would drive by and pick me up (ya that didn't happen either).

Since I had gotten myself into this mess the only way out was to finish climbing up the rest of the hills... so not good.

I couldn't even finish the ride completely. By the end of it all my knee was in too bad of shape to finish the last climb up Wildcat Canyon- I had to bike to the bart station so I could get out of the valley. ::sigh::

Luckily, Andrew's family's bbq was filled with a whole slew of doctors all of which thought my left knee tendons were inflammed.

So basically I need to take it easy until my knee stops hurting and then be "reasonable" about working out. HA! reasonable?!

But they did say that if I wasn't more careful I'd only suffer for it later. So in order to listen to the doctor's advice I am taking this week off from training and only doing yoga. I have personally decided that part of this is due to lack of stretching on my part. I have noticed lately that my flexibility has gone way down. So I have decided to do yoga/ stretch everyday regardless of whether or not I am working out. Hopefully this will kick the bad knee habit in the bud.

Attempting to not be a mono-athlete any more

So I finally went back to running to day - the first time since my tri for fun! It has been a good hiatus, but it was sure hard to get back into the swing of things. I have decided to do some nice easy short runs during my lunch break, since my after work schedule doesn't allow me to do much training until my grad school apps are over with.

Today was shitty, but it is probably a good thing that I am back to running. I am hoping that by March I can do 13 miles no problem.

I am also hoping that even though I am only doing a few miles at lunch that that qualifies as me as bi-athlete again, right?!

Also, went back to the Cal's swim practice on Monday for their recovery workout swim. It was good and no cramping happened - although it came close at one point! I think that I need to do some calf strengthening exercises when my foot is flexed and pointed so that my calf doesn't cramp during butterfly and breast.

Here's our recovery workout (we were in a 33m long pool so the work is a bit wonky):

Warm Up:

200m free

10 X 66m: 1st 66m: build up (i.e. start slow and get fast by the end), 2nd 66m: cruising pace, 3rd 66m: build down, 4th 66m: slow and 5th 66m: fast. Repeat

5 X 100m: 1st, 3rd and 5th are free style, 2nd and 4th were either free style drills or non-free

5 X 100m: 1st 100m: free, 2nd 100m: IM, 3rd 100m: free, 4th 100m: backwards IM, 5th 100m: free

4 X 133m: 1st 133m: regular IM, 2nd 133m: free, breast, back, free, 3rd 133m: free, free, back, free and 4th 133m: all free

Cool down:

200m free

And that's all she wrote folks! Enjoy!

Sad Calf is now Just-Barely-Making-It-By Calf

Oh and the workout

I forgot to post the workout that we did so that anyone training can do it as well.

Here we go:

Warm up:

200 free

10 X 100m free sets: 1st 100m: is 25m fast 75m slow, 2nd 100m: is 50m fast 50m slow, 3rd 100m: is 75 m fast 25 slow, 4th 100m: is all fast, 5th 100m: is all slow. Repeat

Main Set:

6 X 300m free kick sets: the kick set is comprised of 7 kicks with the left arm stretched out in front then 3 strokes then 7 kicks with the right arm stretched out in front then 3 strokes and so on. This is to work on rotation as well as working your kicks. Also you learn to appreciate the 3 strokes you get in between.

It goes as follows: 1st 300m: kick set for 100m and 200m free, 2nd 300m: kick set for 200m and 100m free, lastly 3rd 300m: is all kick set. Repeat. These should have a 10 sec rest in between the 300's

3 X 300m free and non-free: 1st 300m: 100m non free of your choice (but you could do an IM to make it spicy) 200m free, 2nd 300m: 200m non free 100m free, 3rd 300m: 300m non free

Cool Down:

200m free

So that is it folks! I also gave a modified version to Erica which is basically the same just less intervals.

Here is that:

Warm up:

150m free

6 X 100m: Every 3rd 100m (so the 3rd and 6th) do the close fisted drill for the whole 100m. There should only be a 5 sec break in between 100s.

Main Set:

3 X 300m free style and kick board: 1st 300m: kick board for 100m and 200m free, 2nd 300m: kick board for 200m and 100m free, lastly 3rd 300m: is all kick board. These should have a 10 sec rest in between the 300's

3 X 300m free kick sets: 1st 300m: kick set for 100m and 200m free, 2nd 300m: kick set for 200m and 100m free, lastly 3rd 300m: is all kick set. These should have a 10 sec rest in between the 300's

Cool Down:

200m free

Sad calf is Sad

So Monday I went to swim with the Cal Tri Team for the first time while I try and decide if it is a good idea for me to actually join the team. There are a couple of reasons why I am still on the fence about joining- even though it is a great team and would be an awesome way for me to push myself- the least of which is the fact that all the Cal-Hoorah kinda scares me a bit. (What can I say I went to NYU for god sake... college spirit just isn't in my nature! I'm trying to reform and be happy/ spunky about it... also, not in my nature!)

I was also worried that I was going to be the "old" person on the team with a bunch of über- spunky freshman and they were going to shame me... which actually sorta happened- just not in the way I was imagining.

After amping myself up for the whole evening (the practice is at 8pm) and telling myself that I was a highschool swimmer and "God damn it can TOTALLY do this", I get there and the practice starts. First of all let me preface this by the face that in highschool our swim coach was an ex-navy seal, and while he was an amazing coach and great guy he was a yeller. Actually I have NEVER had a swim coach that was not a yeller (now that I ponder on this fact it could be due to the fact that when you swim your head is in the water and you are actually unable to hear your coach talking to you so by the time you DO get to the wall they are irate from trying to talk to you the whole way and there for are ready to yell at you. Just things to ponder...) And by yeller I mean: point at you in the pool "Why have you stopped swimming?! Did you completely misunderstand the concept of sets with only a 5 second rest? You are not fast enough for this lane today" and suddenly you have been demoted a lane IN FRONT OF THE WHOLE TEAM. So... going on THAT experience I really thought that it would be more along those lines.

In actuality I don't know if the swim coaches really cared if anyone new was there or not. Not because they don't care- they do- it was just that there was only two of them and a WHOLE lot of us with seriously varying skill levels. They could not keep track of what everyone was doing. It would have been much more helpful if they had a board to write the sets down on so that they didn't have to recite them to us each time we finished one... but oh well you live and you learn I guess.

Once there you kinda just hop in a lane that you *think* you might swim at the same level as everyone else and you just start down the lane in a crazy free for all and hope you are able to make due. It was actually kinda crazy/ fun in a way - I have never been to a swim practice that was that disorganized, but it was a great way to sorta just melt in with the rest of the team without sticking out like a newbie-sore-thumb! I must say tho, not all the lanes had lane lines and in the frenzy that was the swim I got smacked, kicked and even scratched while swimming! A bit too reminiscent of water polo practices, HAHAHA.

The sets were great, but not too challenging. I got to be the leader in my lane- which was bad because I was in a lane too slow so I didn't really get a great workout. I should have bumped up a lane, but it was just too crazy so I stuck with it. And here is where the most embarrassing thing that can happen at a swim practice happened: mid butterfly, in the deep end of the pool I get a majorly intense calf cramp. So intense I actually started to sink to the bottom of the pool because I could not concentrate on anything but the pain. Of course this holds up the whole lane that I am heading- and I have to struggle to the surface and pathetically doggie paddle over to the wall where the coach is standing and staring at me. Let me reiterate: I doggie paddled at a freaking swim practice! Needless to say I am glad that they really didn't know me at this practice.

Any who, after a few minutes of waiting to see if this cramp would go away I sheepishly crawled out of the pool and left the practice hobbling down to my car. Unfortunately by the time I drove home (Thank GOD it was my left leg or else I would have been stranded there) the cramp had become so intense that I couldn't put any pressure on it and therefore was stranded in the garage. Of course it was also the day that Andrew had left his phone in the car so there was no possible way of calling for help. Finally I got up stairs to my bottle of ibuprofen and a heat pack- it took over an hour for the cramp to die down enough so that my foot was not forced into a relevé.

Of course Erica, the-soon-to-be-great-doctor, diagnosed it over the phone: evidently the leading cause of cramps are dehydration and imbalance of electrolytes. I.e. me: not eating pre-practice and drinking coffee the day of were my downfalls. The succubus that is coffee strikes again! Now, I am once again going cold turkey with the no-coffee plan, thankfully I have ol' reliable green tea to get me through the day!

Now we are on day two and it is still super sore and hard to walk. I feel like such an old person right now. I asked Laryssa if this is a sign that I am officially old and she said that I wasn't officially old until I was sore and hurt, but couldn't remember why... So I guess I'm not old. I'm just young and embarrassed instead... Great!

Laryssa's Birthday Ride

It was a BIG weekend for team Shut up & Sweat.

We kicked off the birthday festivities on Saturday with a 9am Laryssa- Liz swim lessons. It was nice and frustrating- just the way I am sure that Laryssa likes her swim lessons! We have been working on kicking, breathing and proper body alignment and even though it doesn't seem that way to her we ARE making progress. I WILL have her ready to swim come race season 2011 damn it!

After that it was a little R & R time until the big night where we caught dinner at Ryoko's near Union Square and then off to MJ's Birthday Bootie Mash Up at DNA.

Where we were doing a bit of this:

and this....

oh, and of course some of this:

You know, exactly the kinda of things you want to be doing til 4 am the night before a 30 mile ride that ends in a climb up Pinehurst!

Any who, we were all back up bright and early at 9 am to go to St. Francis's Fountain for a breakfast so huge that the waiter's couldn't believe how much we were consuming. They kept coming over to our table with orders and asking "Do these waffles with strawberries really belong at this table that already has hash browns, huevos rancheros, many sides of eggs, two cheesy-potato-egg-sour cream-concoctions and a milk shake?!". Oh yes they do!

Then off to Berkeley for our Sunday ride. The Pinehurst ride is Laryssa's nemesis just the way that Wildcat is mine. The first time we went on this ride Laryssa and I had only stopped drinking about 3 hours before the ride and it was brutal going up that hill. So of course it was the perfect ride to do on her birthday!

We had a few new riders as well: Erica's friend Sven, his friend Paulie, and Erica's boyfriend Darwin who cycles with us off and on.

All in all the ride went really well and luckily it turned out not to be too hot or cold that day. It was Erica's first hang-over ride and she was quite the trooper! It was also my first ride after a long night of dancing in heels- and let me tell you my knees did NOT appreciate that decision by the end of the ride!

While my knees might not have appreciated the weekend I sure was happy to have a chance to wear my favorite Pepto-Bismol T-shirt that was happily donated to me by Erica :)

Of course Laryssa had that Birthday Energy going for her so when it came to Pinehurst she powered up that hill and put us all to shame!

Her victory photo at the top!

That girl dominated that hill and can now proudly say that Pinehurst is no longer her nemesis! We all have to move on to bigger and better things eventually...

Darwin, happy to be at the top of the hill- he was a bit worse for a wear since his job has been working him 24/7!

After that it was smooth sailing down hill and off to a yummy Chinese dinner at Mandarin Garden- where we actually ate the restaurant out of food! HA!

Poor owner he had no idea what he was getting into by having us all eat there after a long weekend and long ride!

Team Shut up & Sweat good thing we aren't obese after all the food we consume!

For good measure, here's a video that Erica filmed while biking- very safe of her!