Thank you!

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Photo Credit Pete Sousa @petesouza44

The end is nigh and, I for one, wish I could extend my thanks to President Obama.  He may not have accomplished everything he hoped for eight years ago however his presidency was largely successful.  Our economy has recovered, unemployment is is lower than it has been in decades, and he set an example for all of us to follow.  He is a caring, sincere, eloquent, and good man.  We could all hope comport ourselves as well as he has under the extreme pressure of the leader of our nation.  He was under fire from the moment he was elected until the very last hours.  Time will tell us what his lasting legacy will be but I have all the information I need.  Thank you, President Obama.  Thank you for leading with dignity, class, and restraint.  Thank you for setting an example of how marriage and family life can be balanced and loving even while holding down a demanding and stressful career.  Just thank you for being you.

Speaking of work, back to mine...

Workout data:

• 486 calories burned
• 31 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 8,373 steps taken
• 4.15 miles covered

Rackets Down Under

Aussie Open 2017 is under way - second round ends today (well, technically it is already tomorrow there) with some big names in action.  Djokovic, Serena, and Nadal all play their second round matches tonight.  In fact, Djoker is in the third set of his match live as I type.  Istomin is giving him a run for his money, pushing the three hour mark already with it knotted up at two sets a piece.  Exciting stuff!  After attending the US Open in 2014 I have become a fairly big tennis fan.  If you like sports and you haven't watched a Grand Slam final, you should make it a point.  Even the early round matches can be quite entertaining.

Workout data - Wednesday:

• 804 calories burned
• 70 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 13,674 steps taken
• 6.83 miles covered

Workout data - Tuesday:

• 593 calories burned
• 50 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 9,485 steps taken
• 4.72 miles covered

Workout data - Monday:

• 504 calories burned
• 46 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 9,667 steps taken
• 4.70 miles covered

NFL Divisional Round

The NFL divisional round of the play-offs was this weekend.  Seattle traveled to Atlanta in the first game.  Atlanta's offense with Matt Ryan and Julio Jones was tops in the NFL this season but the Seattle defense has traditionally been formidable.  Unfortunately the offense proved to be too much and Seattle was dismissed from the playoffs, 36-20 Falcons.  The second game was New England hosting Houston.  While the final outcome was as the experts predicated, the Texan defense played quite well and turned Brady over twice.  The final score reflects the Texans inability to produce on offense, 34-16 Patriots.  The third and fourth games exchanged time slots due to weather in Kansas City.  In the third game, the Packers jumped out to a 21-3 lead on the Cowboys however the 'Boy fought back and the game was tied with 35 seconds left in regulation after a Bailey field goal.  Aaron Rodgers took the field with two timeouts in his pocket.  On third and forever, he rolled out to his left and found Cook (a TE) who made a phenomenal shoestring catch to setup a 51 yard field goal attempt.  Crosby knocked it through, 34-31 Packers.  The final game of the night was more of a defensive battle.  The Steelers failed to make the end-zone and their kicker made a playoff record six field goals.  The Chiefs had a chance late when they scored a touchdown to make the game 18-16 with a two point attempt pending.  Smith threw a strike and for a second the game was tied.  Unfortunately a yellow rag lay on the ground - holding Chiefs.  The second attempt failed and the Chiefs defense couldn't force a three and out.  18-16 Steelers.

Championship match-ups:
    Pittsburgh Steelers at New England Patriots (AFC)
    Green Bay Packers at Atlanta Falcons (NFC)

Workout data - Sunday:

• 667 calories burned
• 53 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 11,362 steps taken
• 5.68 miles covered

Workout data - Saturday:

• 515 calories burned
• 40 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 8,659 steps taken
• 4.31 miles covered

Workout data - Friday:

• 613 calories burned
• 57 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 10,391 steps taken
• 5.05 miles covered

Snow Days!

Somewhere between 8-10 inches of snow fell on our neighborhood.  We live in the Pacific Northwest, just over an hour from the ocean, in a temperate climate.  You know, one that doesn't get snow every winter and only a dusting when it does snow.  The metro area is completely messed up - our roads are barely passable and even then best with a 4-wheel drive vehicle.  So we had a pajama party and watched a movie yesterday.  It was rather fun but I'm ready for the roads and weather to go back to normal!

Today was all about work.  I worked 20 of the last 24 hours so my movement and energy levels are down.  I did continue my workout streak, accomplishing at least 30 minutes each day.

Workout data - Yesterday:

• 555 calories burned
• 46 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 9,057 steps taken
• 4.42 miles covered

Workout data - Today:

• 519 calories burned
• 34 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 7,962 steps taken
• 3.92 miles covered

Day 3

Workout data:

• 570 calories burned
• 38 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 9,381 steps taken
• 4.54 miles covered

2.0.1.7

2,017 reasons this will be a good year.  How about I just start with the top 5 and then work my way up as the year progresses?

Reasons to jump for joy:

1. I'm still circling the sun.
2. I have a hunky husband.
3. I have a goofy and delightful daughter.
4. My dog is smelly, protective, and just plain lovable...even when he eats the crayons.
5. I'm on my way to making my goals.

Speaking of #squadgoals (because I'm cool like that!)

1. Complete the 2,017 in 2017
2. Do a half marathon with my ladies.  The Kauai one sounds lovely right about now!
3. Do more fun "code" projects for the challenge

Workout data:

• 722 calories burned
• 72 minutes spent moving my bottom
• 13,096 steps taken
• 6.43 miles covered

Sleep:  never enough

Food:  too much but oh so good

Overall:  It was a good day.  I didn't get enough done for work (doesn't matter how many hours I work, I still have more to do).  I got to hang out with my family and eat a delicious meal.  My daughter spun around in circles; clapping, singing, and high-fiving happily.  Side note:  she gets really excited about touchdowns - like REALLY excited.  Yep, raising her right :)

Around the town:

Clemson took down 'Bama in the National Championship game on a TD pass with 1 second left on the clock.  Final score:  35-31

Seconds away...

Ironman 70.3 Honu was a tough day, to say the least.  Nine months later I am still frustrated by how close I came to finishing the swim before the cutoff.  This was one of the hardest races I have ever done, primarily because my grandmother passed away a little less than a month before race day.  That meant an emergency trip from Honolulu, Hawai'i to Greeley, Colorado and no training for 11 days.  On the flight back to HI I told my husband that I wasn't going to do the race - I just wasn't mentally prepared for it given the circumstances.  Then, I arrived back at work to find my co-workers had created a care package for me and it gave me a jolt of mental fortitude.

Race morning came and my old friend anxiety came back as I looked out into the ocean and the swim course.  Open water racing and I have a love-hate relationship although I haven't figured out what it is that causes the issue.  I love swimming in the ocean, snorkeling, etc. but when I toe the starting sand, my heart rate shoots up.  I suspect it has more to do with being in control than the actual water itself - I had some issues with SCUBA until I realized it was the bobbing around on the surface was the problem.  I had mastered the race swim for the last long distance triathlon I did in a lake and had a solid swim as well in my last Ironman.  The toughest part of doing a long (or ultra) distance triathlon is the mental aspect - staring down the challenge in front of you and saying "Yep, I have this!"  That also means that competing in the race has to be for yourself and not anyone else. 

I positioned myself at the back, to make sure I didn't get pulled under in the crazy start.  I started going and felt pretty good for the first 1/4, then I hit some of the chop and had to pause for a second to get my bearings.  I was actually still in a pack of swimmers at that point and even passed a few.  Then I made the turn around the 2nd buoy and looked up to sight and discovered I couldn't see anything.  The next buoy, which was over a 1/2 mile away, was lost in the rising sun.  There were guys on paddle boards turning tons of people around because they were swimming out to the open ocean and way off course.  That didn't exactly settle my nerves much nor did the fact that they were pulling people out of the water all over the place.  I figured I was out there, I might as well keep going - my pride wasn't going to let me get pulled out.  There was this amazing paddle boarder who ended up paddling around the remainder of the course for me.  He was my eyes so I didn't have to keep stopping to try and figure out where the course was - he stayed on my right so as long as I could see or feel his board I knew I was on course!  He went above and beyond and is the reason I finished the swim at all, honestly.  (Although my right hand had a few bruises from smacking his board!)

By the time I came around for the home stretch, I was exhausted.  After fighting the waves, dealing with not being able to see the course and, oh yeah, swimming over a mile, I just didn't have much energy left.  I knew I was close to the cutoff and gave it my last effort.  Perhaps if I hadn't stopped to turn around and thank the paddle boarder as I stood up or if I hadn't stumbled around coming out of the water, I might have crossed before that magical cutoff time.  I wasn't going to leave the water without thanking the paddle boarder - just didn't seem right.  Running (or walking) after being horizontal for over an hour is a bit of trick too.  Anyway, as it turns out, I probably could have just kept going because the volunteers/race staffers in transition didn't realize that time had expired, so they were going to let me go.  Given that I clearly wasn't going to win the race, they probably would have let me finish and register a time but I was following the rules and turned in my time chip.  Given the windy conditions on the bike and the scorching sun on the run, I don't believe my race day would have gotten any easier :)

Fast forward to today and I am 106 days out from Ironman Coeur d'Alene.  Yep, it's sneaking up on me and I'm reflecting on that last race.  I need to focus on the positives and work on solutions to the negatives.  Hey, I wasn't one of the 100ish people that they pulled out of the water!  I also wasn't one of the 20ish women in my age bracket that either didn't start or didn't finish the swim.  I am in a lot better position now to conquer the swim (and the entirety of the race) than I was at that time.

So - here's to sunny days, long rides, good runs and smooth swims!  IMCDA - here I come! :)