Natural Products

A few years back I was searching online for natural products, oils, homeopathy, lotions, etc. when I came across a website, www.iherb.com. I bought a few items and really liked them. It had been about 2 years since I visited the sight again, but just recently I bought more items from them. They have great prices and a wide variety of natural products. I'm not sponsored by them, but I do like what they have to offer, so please check them out.

If you decide to buy from them, here's a coupon code for a $5 disount LEX332.

My First Outdoor Bike Ride

The swelling on my foot has been decreasing and so I decided to venture out on my road bike for a test spin. I decided to take my stress fracture recovery extremely conservatively, so I decided not only to not run (duh) but to not ride outside either. I have, however, been riding the stationary bike indoors at the gym with my boot on (take a look at previous photos).

It was a bit chilly yesterday morning when I headed out to meet my good friend Claudia. We road along the rec trail towards Lover's Pt. and into Pebble Beach. At Bird Rock we turned around and headed home...it was only a 22 mile ride, but it felt great to be outdoors with the wind in my face! I felt strong on the bike, thank goodness, but the wind on the way back was horrible! I forgot what that feels like.

The swelling wasn't any different after I returned home than what it was when i left, so that was a good sign.

Today, however, I woke up at 2am with a scratchy throat...so, I think I will just go for a walk today with Jay and Sprocket. It's a beautiful sunshiny day~!

Jello-Arms

Has this ever happened to you? You have one great swim workout after another and then it hits...jello arms. You get in the pool and you know instantly that todays workout just isn't going to be like the others. Your stroke feels off, you try harder, you try relaxing, you try adjusting your stoke...nothing. Today, you'll just float and enjoy being out in the sunshine.

For three days in a row I felt like this. I had been having GREAT swim workouts and then I got in this past thursday and I don't think I moved forward! Anything on the 1:30 base is VERY comfortable and when I can't make a 100 on the 1:40 or 1:45, I know I'm exhausted! My mind wanted to work, but the body made it very clear that it wasn't going to happen. I knew this feeling would pass and today (finally) I felt better. I think within the next few days I'll be back to feeling GOOD in the water.

I've had some people ask about my foot. And I had ultrasound on it monday and there was no pain...yippie. However, there is still some swelling around my toes. It's already been 6 weeks of wearing the boot, but I'm going to wear it another week and then reasses. I'd rather take care of this now; even if it's another 2 weeks in the boot, it's better to be safe than sorry.

After Birthday Breakfast

Sunday morning found Jay and I waking up at 9am!!

The sun was shinning and it was going to be a super day. We made a yummie breakfast burrito consisting of eggs, veggies and chicken.



We set up our camping chairs in the front yard and enjoyed the sun!

What a glorious way to start the day.

My Birthday

As my friend and client said, now that I'm 34, I've hit my mid-30's...yikes!!

I had a low key potluck on saturday night with a few friends and family members.



We're having such beautiful warm weather lately (70's or so) which is unusual for January, but I'm not complaining.



So, I wanted an outside candle lit and tiki torch dinner, but after the sun goes down, it's get mighty chilly and we migrated inside our small shack!




It was a nice birthday!

Das Boot

My foot underwent ultrasound today and....there was no pain!! It's been 6 weeks now that I've been wearing the walking boot and although my foot feels good, there is still some swelling around my toes. So, to be safe, I've decided to keep the boot on for another week and then reasses it. The swelling has decreased quite a lot, but there is still some residual effects.

Stationary Cycling

January 14, 2009

Although it's boring, I've been getting on the stationary bikes at the gym for an easy spin of 20 minutes to 1 hour (that's about all I can handle, even with the ipod).

It's been so nice here, around 70 degrees, which is quite unusual for January and there's nothing better than riding and running outdoors; unfortunately, I'm stuck inside for my "ride" and weight lifting regimen, but I'm enjoying our outdoor pool!




I'm swimming about 5 days per week and averaging about 4900 yds. per day; for me, that's pretty darn good! I feel I'm getting stronger and I hope that the cycling and running will come along quickly. I'll be able to take off my boot next week, but will take it fairly easy, maybe only running 1 mile on the treadmill the day I take off my boot. I want to make sure that I'm completey healed before going crazy with training.



My first race of the season will be Wildflower in May. I opted not to compete in any earlier races as this will give me plenty of time to get into race shape!

2009

So this is belated, but Happy New Year!! I can't believe it's already 2009. What happened??? Well, I've been nursing a bit of an injury...and for those of you who know me, I don't get injured, but after having a swollen foot for 8 months and not knowing what was wrong (of course I knew something was wrong, but I didn't have pain) I kept racing and training on it. I found out a few days after Thanksgiving that I had a slight stress fracture in my left foot and have been in a walking boot since. I have about another week or so until I can start running and cycling again.

This has been a good thing as this is the longest break I've taken from training in over 14 or 15 years! Even though I haven't been able to ride outdoors or run I have been water running and swimming a lot (pushing off with only one foot, makes for a bit of a challenging flip turn)! In addition, I've been lifting weights three times per week and have recently started cycling on an indoor gym trainer. It's actually nice to do something different, even though it's sort of the same thing.

I was bummed that I had to pull out of the Napa Valley Marathon, but there's always next year.

I have decided to race this year (I was seriously thinking about taking this year off) and have signed on with Team Sport Beans/NTTC for my 3rd year with them. I'm looking forward to racing some different races this year, however I will be returning to the Tri-Cal Series to defend my title.

During this time off from training, I have been able to put forth more time into organizing my home as well as the coaching business.

I'm looking forward to a great 2009 and hope you are too!

Monterey Bay Multisport

Alexis and I are pleased to invite you to join the 2009 Monterey Bay Multisport High Performance Triathlon Team for 2009!! Alexis has worked very hard to update our website(www.montereybaymultisport.com) to provide you with all the upcoming 2009 information as well as events that happened in 2008. We have included links to the USAT National site relevant to our junior team members and parents. With my position at USAT as one of the 3 National Camp directors, we were able to include all the information on the 2 USAT Skills camps in our region in june and july also.

We have made some changes to our business for the upcoming season that we believe will benefit all of you. We have added an extra weekend workout each month( total of 2 sundays per month), added some new locations, as well as keeping our weekly track/transition workout on weds eves( at MPC) and the open water swims on friday eves beginning in april. The 2009 season fees have remained the same as 2008! Alexis is going to be the contact person and head coach of the ADULT group and Sharon is going to be the contact person and head coach for the JUNIOR group. As always, we will meet together for our workouts and events!! We have a complete calendar of all the planned workouts beginning in Feb. We have compiled a list of team events/races also. Wildflower will be our 1st Team Race!! If you have not registered for one of the races at Wildflower, you can go to www.tricalifornia.com. Be sure to pay for the appropriate number of camp nights you plan to stay. MBM will have a special site for a team campsite, but you must pay online to be able to get in on race weekend.

Information for the 2009 MBM Adult and Junior teams can be found at www.montereybaymultisport.com. These documents can be downloaded and mailed back to us. Please fill in the athlete information sheets( detailed as possible), include the first payment( $200 per junior member, $300 per adult member) check written to MBM and snail mail the registration paperwork and waiver to:
Adult Team members- Alexis Smith- 866 Lomita St, Monterey, CA 93940
Junior Team members- Sharon Osgood- 26120 Zdan Rd, Carmel Valley, CA 93924

Please feel free to call or email us if you have any questions! If you know other athletes that may be interested in our team, please pass on this information.

We have partnered with Fleetfeet Sports in Monterey to offer a lecture series on the 2nd Tues of each month from 6-7:30PM. Fleetfeet Sports is offering a special deal if you sign up for all 8 lectures- $75 ( includes a $25 off discount from the store). I have listed the lecture subjects below-


Lecture Series at Fleetfeet MTY 6 PM-7:30PM call 372-5664 to register

Cost for the entire 8 session series - $75
Drop-in fee $15 per session.

*Sign up for an entire session and receive a coupon for $25 good at Fleet Feet Sports Monterey on any purchase over $100.

February 10th – Goal Setting
March 10th – Water Running & Injuries
April 14th – Using Imagery to improve fitness
May 12th – Race Preparation for extreme climates (heat or cold)
June 9th – Parent/Kids Coaching (What’s Right For Your Child)
July 14th -Safety for Outdoor Exercise
August 11th -Swim tips for Open Water
September 8- How to enjoy the offseason and stay fit