Crickey! Little challenges...

I have been febrile (google it).  But I seem to be recovering.  I have been weak and lost my appetite (when has that ever happened to me?  Seriously...).  So I went to the Doctor.  Along with being a GP he specialises in being a sports doctor.  He knows I am training for Ironman.  He told me to harden up.  I felt better immediately.  It annoyed me.  Was it all in my head?  The sleeping, the fever?  The getting light headed in the shower and having to sit down unexpectedly only to get wedged into my unusually small shower cubicle (I never knew I had so many knees and elbows until they were competing for space up my nose)?  Damn it, am I becoming the hyperchondriac (I am too sick to know if I spelt that right, help Sarah)  I've always held in such disdain?

I am determined to get better in time for the half marathon on Saturday.  The aforementioned paragon of medical care is also running.  He is whippet lean so I doubt I'll see much of the skamp but at least I'll prove him wrong.  Or will I be proving him right?  Oh I don't even know!  

Well, just watch me, I'll come back better than ever.  Or at least hopefully more or less the same.

Until next time, look both ways before crossing the street because people can get confused even on one-way systems.

love
Ironmaiden.

New things and other things....

Ahhhh...the case of the missing blog post!  We may never know where it went, what it saw or who it talked to...

Anyway, I have some new things:
- new training paddles for swimming.  These go on my hands and supposedly make me strong and more responsive to the water.  Or something.  So far they mostly just make me clatter into the end of the pool when I forget to stop (which still happends quite regularly).
- aerobars - these are borrowed from Eyk, who no doubt has less trouble using them than me.  They are twitchy little suckers...slightest tremor in my elbow and I am wobbling all over the road.  And it turns out I have surprisingly tremorly elbows.
- new pedals- these give me a wider base and more stability through my feet, and, more importantly, they look the part...see above in terms of wobbling all over the road when trying to get back in the sodding things....
- new shoes - they are light and clean and wonderful.  They make me feel so fast I was very surprised to find I was in fact, not, any faster....

So I am starting to at least look like I am taking this campaign seriously.  Practise will help and hopefully in time I will swim into the end of the pool less (turn girl turn!), and wobble on the bike less too! I have another half marathon on the horizon so I guess I'd better start thinking about running!

Until next week, everyone just be happy being who you are!

love
Ironmaiden 

Half marathons - not always a walk in the park...

Hello everyone!

So these half marathon larks aren't as easy as they sound, I was a bit tired on Sunday.  I was also very very cold! The first 10 or so ks were OK, but then the rain came in sideways and the wind was in front of me not matter what direction I was facing...it reduced my wheezy shuffle down to a rickitty plod.  But I got there in the end. I just had to go home and sit with my fire lit, heat pump running, down jacket on, drinking hot drinks and partaking in tabby heat transfer for a couple of hours until I got back to normal.

 My ankle stood up more or less, a little bit of swelling, but not too much pain.  My little old lungs were OK too, it was really just the rain blowing into my earhole (the left one, if you were wondering), and a lack of weetbix that held me up (oh, and also, see previous posting associated with chafing....nb   not chaffing).  So all good lessons for next time I guess.

Here is a photo of me running while I still had the energy to raise my arms!

Now.  The important bit - my time wsa 2:50 - not very good, and for the observant amongst you, even slower than my time in the Buller half a few years ago.  My excuse is that I was just 7 weeks from the Wellington faceplant incident, but the reality might just be that I am a bit pants at running!

I am at least now enjoying a relaxing recovery week, so little training I barely know what to do with my spare time.

So until next week,

love

Ironmaiden

Race week

Well, it is half marathon week and to be honest it is a bit of a worry.  I suspect I haven't done enough wheezy shuffling building up for it.   Still, the weather has been fabulous and I guess at least my ankle is better and I can wheezy shuffle again, even if it isn't very fast.  I also got drug tested at work today so I can confirm that I am legitimately not using any illegal substances that might affect my performance - for better or worse!  I did however find out that my wee has a low specific gravity, almost 1.  Fascinating, just what I always needed to know.

I'll let you know how Sunday goes,

till next time
love
Ironmaiden