Single Mom

“Single Mom”… I hardly ever think of myself that way. I’m a mom, who just happens to be single. Then there are times where I feel every... single... syllable... of each word. The word “overwhelmed” is a good place to start. 

I have the most amazing daughter and incredibly supportive parents, and I couldn’t do this without them. That’s when I remind myself… As a “single mom”, I have it pretty darn good and so does my kid. 

But still… I feel guilty. There’s so much more I could be doing as a parent. Instead, I’ve signed up for an Ironman. For the next six months I’ll be swimming, biking, running, eating, sleeping, working, swimming, biking, running, eating, sleeping, working, rinse, repeat. That doesn’t leave much time for… spending time with my daughter, giving her rides to go do the stuff she wants to do, grocery shopping, Christmas shopping, house cleaning and even paying the bills. Oh and, selfish me wants to try and have a little bit of a social life.

I have dust bunnies in my house that chase me down the hall. Seriously. The cats are starting to play with them! The kitchen floor looks like a crime scene. The dining room table has at least two months worth of mail piled on it. I did have a system of “piles” going for a little while, but that cats wiped out my system. Damn cats. My bedroom is a disaster, but still not as bad as the kid’s. The fridge seems to always be empty, yet my daughter does get fed. I’m still not quite sure how I swing that.  

And the only way I’m having anyone come over to my house is if some fairy godmother sends over an army of “merry maids” to spruce things up. So don’t be expecting an invite to my house for the holidays. NOT that it’s very festive here. The XMAS decorations are still buried in the garage somewhere, up high, requiring a ladder, which I don’t have. (Up hill both ways in the snow.)

I’ve only been to one of my daughter’s field hockey games and the chance of me making it to one of her water polo games is slim to none. It doesn’t help that all the games are scheduled at 3:00 in the freakin afternoon when most parents (single or not) are working.

OK, OK… sounds like a bit of a pity party… fine, maybe it is. It’s my party and I’ll cry if I want to.

HOWEVER… I know that I have still made the best choice for me and my daughter. The house may not be clean or decorated, but it is a home. I’m providing something for my daughter that had been missing from her life for too long… a happy, healthy, active mother. One who has set her sights on a really big ass scary goal and is willing to work hard and sacrifice to reach that goal.

I’m confident in knowing that my daughter has no doubt in her mind that when she needs me, I’ll be there. I may have signed up for an Ironman, but I didn't hand off my parental duties. She also knows that she is truly loved by me and that she is still the #1 priority in my life.

I signed up for the Ironman just as much for her as for me. Not that I knew it at the time, but I know it now.

Yes, there are days when I feel overwhelmed as a “single parent”. Luckily I don’t have many of those. Most of the time I’m just too damn busy to realize it. Yes, ignorance can be bliss.

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Now, what I want to know is, how do the single moms with more than one kid do it?  Or the single moms with a baby/babies.  Ya know, those creatures that can't do anything for themselves. Jeez! Props to YOU!

70.3 vs. 5:00

Twas the night (and one week) before my first 70.3…

Since not everyone knows what 70.3 means, I’ll start there.

1.2 mile swim + 56 mile bike ride + 13.1 run = 70.3 miles total – Which also happens to be half the distance of a full Ironman. Hmmm… why is that important to remember??? *wink, wink*

On October 24^th I will be participating in my first ever 70.3 event. (Some of you will notice that I didn’t call it a “race”.) The Challenged Athletes Foundation – San Diego Triathlon Challenge (CAF – SDTC) will be taking place early Sunday morning at La Jolla Cove.

This is an amazing event in support of an amazing cause. (Please, check out this link to get the full scoop.)

As most of you know, I’ve been doing a lot of training lately to get ready for the big day. More than I’ve ever done. I’ve pushed myself farther than I ever have before. With the direction and support of my coach, yes, I said COACH (she's kind of a bad ass - ever head of "Leadville"?)... I’ve accomplished things I never thought I’d ever be able to do.

Last Saturday I swam for 1.5 hours then rode my bike (up hill, both ways… seriously) for four hours, then got home and did NOT fall flat on my face immediately. That did eventually occur, just several hours later. There was a time when a 3 hour ride would ruin me for the rest of the day. Ride, eat, sleep… done.

Next Sunday I’ll be relying on all of my training to get me through the very long day. I will also be relying on my Support Team and Family.

Since this is NOT a race I’ll be able to do some things to help get my through each leg of the event that I will NOT be able to do at my Ironman.

My friend Jon will be my swim buddy.

My goal is to “sight” on Jon and “just keep swimming”. Jon will sight on the buoys and keep us on the swim course as accurately as possible. No zig-zagging! This will help ensure that my swim is as efficient as possible. Nothing like wasting time in the water by swimming off course!

My friend (and training partner) Jeremy will be riding with me.

Jeremy will be providing me with much needed moral support and company (and the usual wit and sarcasm) on the 56 mile ride. I did make sure to warn him about the hills. I hope we’re still friends after this.

My friend (and other training partner) Kat will be running with me.

Once I’ve completed my swim and bike, I get to tackle a half marathon and Kat gets to help me through it. Since this is probably going to be the hardest part, Kat has her work cut out for her. I made sure to warn her about the hills too. Again, I hope we’re still friends after this.

70.3 vs. 5:00 - My dilemma…

Can I go the distance?

Yes!

Can I cross the finish line by 5:00 PM?

Not so sure about that.

5:00 PM is when the course closes. They roll up the "red carpet", take down the lights and the folks that have put on this amazing event get to go home.

The reality is I’m still not “fast”. I’m determined and stubborn and bull headed. (Those of you that know me are all nodding your head right now.) These are super important qualities to have if ya wanna participate in an endurance event of any kind. However, “speedy” is not my middle name (yet).

Who wants to do a word problem with me???

If the event starts at 8:00 AM, and it takes Liz 1 hour to swim 1.2 miles, and 4.5 – 5 hours to ride her bike 56 miles and 3ish hours to run 13.1 miles… When will Liz be done with 70.3 miles? (Don’t forget to include time for transition and eating and bio breaks.)

Answer: Sometime AFTER 5:00 PM

What’s a girl to do?

I have two options…

1. Shorten the distance.

Yep, that simple. I can shave some miles off the ride by taking some short cuts. And since the run is an “out-and-back” I can turn around whenever I feel like it and head back. This means that I could get back in time to cross the finish line. But I won’t have done the full distance. Note: This is NOT something you can do in a race.

2. Do all the mileage

Yep, that simple. But, I won’t get to cross the finish line. And I’ll be out on the course when folks are wrapping the day up and heading for home.

I had been wrestling with this decision for several days, weeks actually. Until this past Thursday night when I sat down with my awesomely amazing daughter and talked it through with her. I told her my concerns about not being able to finish in time. And that I was torn between getting across the finish line in time, and doing the whole thing. She asked me one simple question, “What’s your goal?”

My goal is to complete 70.3 miles in one day.

My choice was clear... I won’t be shaving off any miles in order to save time. I’m going the distance!

Yes, it IS possible that I will be able to accomplish both… Complete 70.3 miles AND cross the finish line be 5:00 PM. That would be AWESOME! And something that I WILL be striving for.

For June 26, 2011 my goal will be different… Complete 140.6 miles before midnight.

You get 17 hours to do an Ironman. The canon fires at 7:00 AM and the race ends at midnight. If you don’t cross that finish line before midnight you are NOT an Ironman… don’t pass Go, don’t collect $200.

However, when that day comes I’ll be a different triathlete than the one I am today.

Just like I’m a different triathlete than I was a year ago.

Name Change...

After careful consideration, which I didn't do to begin with, I decided to NOT participate in Ironman St. George. Instead, I've set my sights on Ironman Coeur d'Alene (CDA).

Why?
Well, after further research, which yes, I did NOT do to begin with, I determined that the chances of me completing IMSG were pretty slim. I'm "In it, to win it!". No, not like that. "Winning" for me means completing the whole thing. Even if it takes me 16 hrs and 50 mins... it will still be a WIN. (Anything more than that is just cutting it too close. You get 17 hours to complete an IM.) After speaking with Mark (my friend/co-worker) that raced in IMSG and learning that he finished the bike with 45 mins to spare until the cut off... well, that got me to do some serious thinking. If Mark only had 45 mins left in the bike before cut off, what would I have??? Mark is way more fit than me and way faster on the bike. *gulp*

I have registered for Ironman Coeur d'Alene!
I'll be in Idaho on June 26, 2011 four, count em... 4 days before my 40th birthday. What an amazing way to end my 30s and kick off my 40s.

Now, don't for a minute think that IMCDA is easy. Ha... far from it. It's still a freakin Ironman and there's still hills and climb to keep things "interesting". HAHA
However, it does fall in to the "yes, it's possible" category of Ironmans for us "first timers".

IMSG is now considered THE Ironman to conquer, if yer that kind of "bad ass" Ironman kinda person. That's not me... yet. Like I said, "I'm in it to win it".

IMCDA... here I come!
I wonder if they'll mind me jumping on the timing mat in Idaho? I wonder if I'll even be able to jump on the timing mat.

Oh...BTW... it hasn't sold out yet... wanna do IMCDA with me???

Baggage

It takes a lot of bags to be a triathlete. Yeah, yeah... I know. It takes a lot more than bags to be a triathlete. But it's the BAGS that get you where you need to go. They "carry" you through. HAHAHAHA... I crack me up. ;-p

Tomorrow's training consists of the following...
Before work: Going for a run (includes Lusk), followed by ActiveX
After work: Going for a ride (includes Torrey)

Getting ready for tomorrow's activities requires packing several bags tonight...

There's the gym bag...
This carries all of my "stuff" that I need in order to get ready for the work day ahead. I show up to work in my work out clothes, I work out, I get ready, I go to work.

There's the cycling clothes bag...
Can ya guess what goes in here?
I bring this bag in to the office so I can change in to my bike clothes BEFORE I leave the office. Hmmm.... I think I may actually change in to my bike clothes before my 4:00 meeting so I can just leave right after. (That's the nice thing about working at Active, no one will give a "flying frog's fat ass" that I'm sitting in a meeting in a cycling kit. That's just how we roll.

Then there's the bike bag...
No, my bike doesn't fit in the bag. All my bike gear, that I don't put on until I'm ready to get on the bike, goes in this bag. Helmet, shoes, arm warmers, sunblock, etc, etc.

Can't forget the lunch bag...
My breakfast drink goes in here. Ha! Got ya! OK, OK, my lunch goes in here too.

Of course there's my laptop bag. Cause I bring my laptop home from work so I can, well, work.

That just leaves my purse. It's too cute to be called a bag.

See what I mean?
That's a LOT of bags for just one day and only two out of the three "activities" that I'm training for.

Yeah, I got me some baggage. ;-}

IronMom

Next year, IM St. George is on Mother's Day weekend. Saturday is the race, Sunday is Mother's Day. That means next Mother's Day I'm gonna be an "IronMom" :-) I know, corny, but hey.

Now that the shock has worn off, finally. I find that my thoughts are pretty focused on the year ahead and what I'll be doing/need to be doing. I think about my current training efforts in a whole new way.

I think about my energy levels differently. I'm already looking at food differently and of course thinking about all of the equipment I'll need. Oh and finding a coach. What should I be registering for? What century rides are coming up? Hmm, there's a Half Ironman in Oct in AZ that might be a good thing to register/train for. I wonder if it's sold out. If it is sold out, do I know someone that could get me in? Can I outfit my current bike with aero bars? Can I borrow a tri bike instead? Something with a LOT more carbon than what I have now. Oh, my cyclometer needs a new battery, but hell even if I put a new battery in it I still need to figure out how to get it to work right. Crap, what did I do with the manual? I'm gonna need to get more sleep. How the hell do I try and date AND train at the same time? Either no dating or meet a guy that swims, bikes, or runs. If he does all three even better! Yeah, I'll have time to meet him during all this. Oh wait, kinda hard to have a conversation with a guy as he goes flying by you in the water or on the road. I'm gonna need new running shoes soon. Dang, I'm really gonna need to buy more sports bras. This working out every day thing equals a lot of laundry. I really need to start drinking more water. I wonder how fried my hair is going to get with all the salt water, chlorine, sweat and multiple washings. I could go on and on and on....

So, when I say my thoughts are "focused" what I REALLY mean is I'm thinking about ALL kinds of things... sometimes all at once. I figure that my thoughts will start to calm down once I lay out my goals and training plan for the upcoming year.

This weekend's training...
Saturday - ActiveX
4 mile run, followed by an ActiveX workout that Arch himself said, "That was a hard one!" Hey Arch - I forgot to say it at the time.... THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!

The run was great! Very scenic and I got to run with my AMAZING daughter. You have no idea how super freakin cool it is that we can actually be out on a run together. She's even thinking ahead about my training. "Hey Mom, when you start doing your long runs, I can ride my bike along side you." Uh yeah, she's that awesome!!!

After the run the lovely workout started with 70 "burpees" Don't know what a burpee is? Check it out here.
My response to Arch when he told me to do 70... are you SERIOUS??? (I honestly thought he was joking.) His response... you're training for an Ironman now. :-| Yep, I shut the hell up.
After that was 60 situps, followed by 50 kettle bell sumo squats thingys, 40 lunge thingys, then 30 turkish getups. I didn't get to the rest of the workout, we ran out of time. Ah well, I did 70 freakin burbees!!!! I call it a WIN!

Sunday - Brick
On the plan: Bike - 1 hour easy followed by 20 min run
Great ride with Jeremy and Kat. Felt like we were flying up the coast! Then we turned around. No more flying for us. Damn head wind. No wonder it felt like we were going so fast.

As I started to curse the "damn head wind" for making the ride so difficult, I quickly reminded myself... "You're now training for an Ironman. The wind is now your friend and will make you stronger." Honestly though, I still cursed at it.

After our ride we put our bikes away and started the run. Ah, the run. As Jeremy put it, the "after thought". Gonna swim a couple miles, then bike over a hundred miles and as an "after thought" I'm gonna run a marathon. Oh wait, I've never actually run a full marathon before. Shit, shit, shit... WTF was I thinking. Stop it Liz! You can do this!!!

There I go again being "focused". ;-p

How cool is this... My mother has pretty much read the entire IM St. George website and has recited to me the list of infractions that can cause me to get penalized or DQ'd. Already the women knows more about the rules of racing in an IM than I do. Now that's great example of a mother's love and devotion.

Happy Mother's Day to all the amazing women in our lives!!!

WTF was I thinking?!?!?!

I. Registered. For. Ironman. St. George.
No, really, I did.

Most of the shock has worn off. OK, maybe not "most". We'll go with "some"... Some of the shock has worn off. Last Sunday, I registered for Ironman St. George.

Exactly one year from today - May 7, 2011, I'll be in St. George, Utah swimming, biking and running.


Even Natasha is still in shock. "My mom is going to do an Ironman. My mom is going to do an Ironman. My mom is going to do an Ironman." This is her chant as we're driving home from dinner. Where we overheard a woman discussing, of all things, triathlons. Our ears perked up and we couldn't help but listen. She was describing to her dining partner the difference between an "Olympic" distance triathlon and an "Ironman". Besides the distances, she explained that an Olympic is "doable" an Ironman is "insane". "Who would be crazy enough to want to do that?" Natasha and I looked at each other and grinned.

Oh sh*t! I registered for an Ironman.
(The moments of realization like to slip in randomly.)

"There’s consensus that the St. George Ironman
course is one of the hardest there is."

The first time I read this quote, my stomach turned. I read this little gem a couple of days AFTER I had registered. I admit, I was slightly freaked out. Umm, by slightly I mean I was ready to throw up. However, somewhere in my dream state later that night, my brain accepted it and I woke up the next morning thinking, "F**K it! Go BIG, or go home!"

I'm still not sure I can put in to words exactly why I felt the need to register on Sunday. I was compelled to do so. Natasha tried to talk some sense in to me before I did it. "Don't you want to sleep on it first? Before you make such a huge decision?" My response, "No". Then she said, "Maybe you should talk to Arch first." To that I replied, "Why? He'll just say 'Go for it!'." So, I went for it. Can I blame this on Arch?

There's so much going through my head about what I need to do, how to do it, how do I get there, etc, etc. Luckily for me I know a LOT of people that have done all kinds of tris, all distances, all levels. I even know the guy that is known as the "Voice of Ironman". I know I have a great support system available to me and I plan to reach out to each and everyone of them that's willing to help me along my journey.

I've never been big on "journaling". (Never had a diary as a kid.) But this seems like a good journey to chronicle.

Let the training begin!!!