So, now what?

So, I did it! My four year journey has ended.

I am a Blackwood Iron Lady!

So, now what?

I promised Mat I wouldn't do it again in 2011. Maybe 2012!? :)

My cousin Darin has been inspired to do the Iron Man next year, so I guess I have passed the baton. If I am able, I will be there to support him as he supported me! And offer lots and lots of good advice!

In the immediate future I need to focus on getting my Aqua Gold choreography figured out for Friday, and even more critically, my Aqua Intense choreography for Tuesday next week. I have only just glazed over the music and my notes and ideas. So I will be quite intent on all things aquatic for the next seven days.

In no particular order, and without deep reflection, these are the things that come to mind when I say to myself: In the next year I want to focus on:

• Mat, and providing whatever he needs from me to be successful in business and happy in life
• TK and getting our relationship strong
• Running - maybe doing a half-marathon
• Gardening, cooking and keeping house
• Home renovations
• Friendships - I'd like to entertain more frequently
• Finding ways to maximize my work - both in output and quality
• Being a great and inspiring fitness instructor - make more connections and have a greater impact on participants and clients
• Getting my Cert IV in fitness

These seem like the start of new year's resolutions, and I guess to some extent they are. I will have a time void now that I won't be training as much and I need to have a focus to fill in that void or I will only blunder along without purpose. I feel more 'whole' with a purpose!

As an aside, I haven't got my photos posted up yet but will do that shortly. I am still waiting for Jan to send a few over, but I have the few that Eleanor took and that Mat got on the phone (Mat's are already on facebook). The official photos are now up and you can see my photos by clicking on this link and then searching for w418.

I also plan to write a letter to the Blackwood organisers to thank and congratulate them on a well run event!

So, that's it! A few photos, and then ... ??

Sunday - October 3rd - 27 days to go

Slept well, got up and headed out for a run at 7am. Funny thing though, in my rush to get out the door I forgot to eat breakfast! I was aiming at 14-15km, but decided that 8 was far enough on an empty stomach! Did it in 48:11, which was, interestingly enough, the exact same time as my last 8k attempt. I wasn't terribly impressed with myself for only getting 8km.

I decided I needed to run again, and did the same 8km loop and this time did it in 47:54 but I had to seriously push those last few metres to get under the 48 minute mark. I was fairly puffed for a few minutes after that sprinting effort. I am, if nothing else, very consistent in my speed, regardless of the conditions.

Both runs were very different. The 7am run was cool and misty, there was a fog and only about 100 metres visibility, and it was still and quiet - until I woke up every dog in the neighbourhood and probably also pissed off every single person in the neighbourhood! I got swooped by a lot of magpies busy defending their babies. Luckily, so far, I haven't been hit by a magpie, but it's not unheard of, so it's a bit intimidating when they swoop down at your head and you can feel the breeze from their wings! Mostly it was quiet and other than feeling stomach cramps at about 33 minutes in, I mostly felt just a little heavy/sluggish. That's fairly typical of how I feel when I exercise first thing in the morning.

The second run was at 2pm. It was hot (20+) and clear and windy. The wind was awesome because it cooled me and left me feeling really refreshed. I love the feeling of running in and out of the sun and shade along the road, I love the contrast. I also felt like the run took less time, partly, I think, because I had just been there and knew where I was going, whereas this morning I was making it up as I went, and wasn't sure how I was going to fare due to the grumbling tummy! Also, the magpies weren't swooping. I guess more of them were eating, because I saw a lot more on the ground.

I spoke to Graeme and will swim at 9:30 tomorrow. I am going to need a wetsuit apparently, as the water isn't as warm as hoped - trouble with the electrics in the new heating system! Pooh!

Had a big day of cleaning, organising, rearranging the house. It sounds kind of lame, but I really needed to get rid of some of the clutter in the house to make me feel like I was more in control of my life and home. I have not paid attention to more than the bare minimum of cleaning requirements for much of this year and it was starting to weigh on me. Terrible timing, but I think that if there's anything I can do to feel more calm, I should do it right now.

T&E came over for afternoon tea and dinner. I missed my bike ride (oops) and ate cheesecake instead. Oh yum! I do so love cheesecake! We discussed some of the planning for the Blackwood, looked over some of the regulations, and T&E offered to bring their caravan to the site for changes of clothes and showers. Not sure if I'll need that much comfort. If I laid down on a real bed half-way through the competition, I might not get back up!!

Well, it's 8:30pm and I'm feeling ready for bed, so I'm off!

Have a marvellous day!

The Sunday After

It's the Sunday after three weeks full of work challenges, it's the Sunday after it all finally gets back to normal!

Last night I slept. And today I slept in! And rested! Oh, how I needed a rest! I am actually glad I didn't try to push the workouts this last week. The crazy shifts at work, a staff member moving on to other opportunities, staff being away sick, and just so many events back-to-back meant that I wasn't getting the recovery time I needed, mentally, at the very least. I wasn't sleeping well, and was up early every day, and coming home spent!

I did six workouts this past week, all fitness classes, and all were great for maintenance, but even there, I was feeling a bit of lethargy. In Attack Kirsty wondered if I had run prior to class. I hadn't, I was just that low on energy.

It also didn't help that I wasn't on top of my diet. Nutrition, as we have established, plays such a critical role in my general well being and energy levels. This week started well, but fell to pieces as the week got more hectic. I ended up eating many super-sugary pre-packaged high-fat low-value meals this week. When I eat like this I feel hungry all the time, as none of this food satisfies in the long-term, so I ate a lot more than I needed too. Normally I don't pay attention to my weight and it holds relatively steady, but this week there was a noticeable weight gain.

Again, I found circumstances ruling, somehow I wasn't in charge of my own food once again (up too early, home too late, missed the shops, no time to prepare anything). This is a real problem for me, especially as I am now working my way through what might be food intolerances, or what might just be a symptom of over training. Either way, not eating right means I'm pretty sure to be feeling a bit ick in the tummy, which sure doesn't help!

So, although today could have been spent doing a few workouts (which I surely needed) I instead spent it doing a few things that I think were more in line with improving my energy levels. Doing things like laundry, mopping the floors (not done in three weeks!), and preparing a few big meals ahead have made me feel back in control while not trying to push myself today, when I'm still low.

I also took the time to review the priorities I set at the beginning of the month. Holding these priorities in mind really kept me on top of my training schedule and I always felt like I was moving forward and accomplishing the important things first! So, I have added a new first priority - me eating well!

1. Nutrition - continue striving to eat nutritious, balanced meals that keep me feeling energised, healthy and ready for each challenge.
2. Horse - min 4 sessions per week - he is an athlete and needs to be trained like one.
3. Run - min 3 sessions per week - running a minimum of three times per week is the only way to maintain my knee strength. Run my race distance consistently!
4. Cycle - min 3 sessions per week - This will be my weakest link and needs to be strong.  I will have to do 20km of hills in varying terrain after having done a previous 4ish hours of exercise!
5. Paddling - can get squeezed in anywhere and I will only need 2 or 3 sessions a week.
6. Rowing - I will use the rowing machine once a week as a tool to work on swimming fitness. The pool will be opened to a few people doing specialised training at the beginning of October. I will have almost a month to get this discipline up to par.

So, with a few bulk meals getting finished up, and my priorities reviewed, I feel ready to face the week and expect to see many successes! I hope to push out a few personal bests this week!

Have a great day, and keep well!

Very Busy With Work

I haven't posted much this week, and I haven't done much exercise this week either (only 5 sessions to date, although Attack is on tonight!), but we've had a tough two weeks at work, and this third week just sort of put the nail in the coffin, if you know what I mean. Saturday should be the last of these hard yards, and then I shall be back at it.

I feel bad that I wasn't able to maintain my training this week, but really haven't felt capable! I am sure there are plenty who find time, no matter what, to get that workout in, and perhaps I allowed my priorities to be shifted, and should have maintained more focus?

When the going gets tough, how do you fit in a workout? What other jobs, chores, or priorities do you shuffle, if any, to get the workout in? Or like me, when it comes to the crunch, does the workout suffer?