Sunday, April 27, 2008

Plugging Along

Well, here's another weekend, almost come and gone. It's been a bit of a messed up week, although I knew it would happen. Too many interruptions beyond my control and this lack of driving ability really throws a monkey wrench into things too. No, my eyes aren't any better, but I did try Erik's prescription sunglasses yesterday and found that they actually make a big difference for riding. They have a very narrow area of improvement but it just happens to be the vision I am lacking. They bring the 50-100 feet range into clearer view which will help immensely on fast rides. I will be able to see the road before it comes to me! Erik has very graciously offered me the use of his prescription which clip right into my new Rudy Project sunglasses. This means he'll have to wear his regular glasses and his clip ons. What a guy! He just gets a brand new pair of cool sunglasses and he has to lend them to me. It'll only be for a week or two and then I have my next eye appt. Maybe I can get something to help me then.

All this stuff in the news about the FDA hearing about LASIK surgery has me a bit worried. Argh. I will try not to think about it. I had PRK anyway and that's not what is being covered, but there are certainly some overlap in the concerns.

So - what did I do this week as far as training is concerned?


• Two runs at school
- thank goodness for the Running Club. Bumped it up to 12 minutes of running and 1 min walk. 37 min to do 5km. Getting there slowly.

• One swim on Saturday. I felt great on the swim, especially since I didn't swim all week. I did 400m of warmups and didn't have to rest every 25m. Then I swam 400m straight. And another 300m stopping and starting a bit. Tried swimming 50m as fast as I could and did it in just a tad over one minute. My hart was pounding after that though so it's not something I could maintain. I guess I'll start doing some faster intervals. I could have swum longer but Erik was waiting so we could go to the LBS and test rides some bikes. I tried out my new Tyr swim goggles and they fit MUCH better than the other ones. No leaks at all!! Didn't connect with the lady who's selling the wet suit so I'll try that next week instead.

• One bike ride on Saturday Did 13 k on my road bike on the flats and 10km trying out a Willier bike which needed a shorter stem because I was too stretched out, and the seat I think was a bit too high so my crotch is hurting today. Next week, I'm going to try the Scott Contessa Cr1 Pro. I need a new bike!

Too big things I'd found about trying out new bikes - if the fit isn't perfect, you can't really judge it because it feels crappy. And I really need to know my speed when I'm riding it. Without my computer, I have no idea if it's faster on the climbs. I took my Garmin but there was no place to mount it. I am going to try to figure out some way to attach it temporarily to the handlebar or my wrist so I can can judge if the bike really is faster. We did take it out for a good 10k ride and did some climbing in East Kelowna.

Today I was planning to join the Sunday Ride but I just didn't feel 100% when I got up so I bailed. It'll be a very challenging ride for me and I need to feel strong if I'm going to attempt it. This will be better for Erik anyway because now he won't have to wait for me after the long climbs and he can do a hard ride and keep up with the rest of the guys. Then if we join the ride next week, he'll be more likely to be willing to wait for me, the hill slug.

Well, I'm off to do a run, 5.5 km I hope. Going to start bumping up my weekend run by a half km every week till I get to 10km. See how that goes. I am having some pain in my big toe joint when I bend my right foot. I don't know if it's from my shoes (same old problem rearing it's head again), or if it's because I wore my shoes with heels two days in a row. Or maybe even because I wore my running shoes all day after the lunch run on Thursday. Anyway, it's sore. I just speed laces but I think I'd better take them out and keep the status quo so I don't add another problem into the mix.

My weight

119.9 yesterday 120.1 this morning. I did eat a White Spot burger on Friday night though, and had wine with dinner last night. I'm trying though! I'm going to make up a week's lunch and dinner plan today so I can't bail on the diet all week. It jsut takes organization!

This Week's Plan


Sun- run 5.5k, bike 20km
Mon - swim
Tues - 3un 5k (allergy shot, baseball game)
Wed - swim, hills if time (baseball game)
Thurs - run 5km, bike easy?
Fri - bike? or rest
Sat - swim, bike

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Wednesday

I REALLY wanted to go swimming today but I had to help the little guy with his homework before we went out for dinner tonight to see Garnet Rogers. Alas, it's been a bit of a blown week but what can you do? Tomorrow I have a staff meeting, followed by another baseball game so I won't be able to do anything again. Sigh. At any rate, I DO get to run at noon tomorrow so it's not totally a lost week. :)

On a brighter note, a girl at work has a long-sleeved Orca wesuit for sale. I think it might be too small but it's worth a try. If it fits, I can take it to the pool this weekend see how it feels. That should be exciting!!

I did ok with my diet today but went out for lunch AND dinner so that made it a bit tough. I had a roast beef sandwich for lunch and halibut for dinner. Only 2 glasses of wine and a smidgeon of hubby's cheesecake. No worries though, I was down to 120.5 this morning so I doubt I'll gain weight in one day.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Tuesday

Well after FOUR days off, I ran today with the kids - OMG, I can't believe I've had 4 days off - I will be as strong as an ox with all the muscle I must have built during that rest time LOL. Overall I felt good. Somehow I managed to drain the Garmin battery AGAIN, and I didn't have a watch but, anal me, I counted my steps so I could keep on track. I did 12 minute runs with 1 min walk breaks today. 5 km took me about 37 minutes. I ran one loop around the block, then 3 km with the kids (although it took them awhile to catch me) and then one more loop to finish up. The last set of running, my lower quads and knee were getting tight and starting to hurt so I stopped and walked one minute after only 7 minutes of running. Whatever it takes to stay injury-free. I iced my legs after and did some stretching. I think I'll be ok tomorrow. It's my Thursday run that usually hurts me later. We shall see.

Down to 120.3 lbs this morning. Yahoo! Hope it's not an aberration.

I hope to swim tomorrow (and maybe do hill repeats before going out for dinner although that's not too likely).

Well that's all for now I guess. :)

1500 calories today. Ooops. It was all healthy stuff though. Just too much bread.

Sunday, April 20, 2008

This Body of Mine

Well, first off, I have to ashamedly admit I have not done a SINGLE workout this weekend. Sigh. Actually, it was the smart thing to do so I guess I shouldn't be disappointed in myself. My hubby's been sick with a bad cold and I have been feeling very run down and tired. I didn't expect to ride this weekend because it's been bloody cold with this snow. (A high of only 6 C today). I chose not to swim yesterday because we had a hectic schedule. Not only that, hubby would have had to drive me and wait around because my eyes are still really bad. (Please heal!!!)

But all was not lost. I could surely run today. I enjoy running in the cold and my shins are feeling better with two days rest. But this morning, I woke up with a murderous headache. Two rounds of Ibuprophen and one of Acetaminophen have not budged it. And now, here I sit at my computer which I'm pretty sure doesn't help. :) I just drank a litre of water because I thought I'm dehydrated. Crossing my fingers that'll help a bit. I haven't discounted the idea of a run but it's becoming less and less likely.

Weight Loss


So I just sent an email to Nigel of Running from the Reaper fame to see if it's not too late to join his 10 in 10 challenge. They're already two weeks into it but I only need to lose 7 lbs so maybe they'll still let me join. Either way, I'm going to follow along because it always motivates me to announce my goals in various places. I gained 2-3 lbs over our Spring Break holiday and I need to lose those plus the elusive last 5. I dunno. Those five pounds may NEVER come off. I've been trying for a year now. I get down to 118 and then a holiday comes along. So, I will 'go hard' until the end of June and see what happens. I was 121.6 this morning, well see how it goes. I think I'll aim for 1200-1300 calories a day. That's the only way I ever lose, despite my 30-60 minutes of exercise every day. It's just not fair being a woman my age. :)


This Body


Anyway, the point of this post was to meander through my thoughts about this learning process. I am constantly trying to figure out what I can and cannot do and I think I learn something new every day. I am always trying something different, tweaking a variable or two, to find the right balance. But in many ways, it's impossible really. There are so MANY variables, you can't control them all.

This week's challenge? Why the heck did my shins start hurting on Friday and my piriformis act up again on Saturday? I felt achey all over actually. I ran with the kids at school on Tuesday and felt good - bumped it up to a 10 min run, 1 min walk and did a full 5km while the kids did 2km. I iced my shins and stretched lots after and although they were a bit tender the next day, they weren't bad. Great! Run #3 and the orthotics seem to be working! Thursday, repeated the same process - ran 5km at school during the lunch break and felt great during the run, felt good all day in fact. After work, just before supper, I went out on my bike and 25 minutes of hill repeats. 7 X 40 seconds climbing a 4-6% grade. Felt good. No problem. Friday morning, woke up sore. Saturday, felt even more tender. Ugh. I sure WISH I could tell that I need to take it easier WHILE I'm running, instead of a day or two later. It's such a PITA.

So anyway, I'm wondering if maybe I shouldn't run AND do bike hill repeats on the same day? D'uh. Ya think? Next week, I'll do my hard biking on swim days and leave my run days for running only. Running is hard on my body - I am always a little sore the next day. But hill repeats, or a hard fast ride can tire my legs as well. Usually on their own, they are manageable, but perhaps doing them both on the same day isn't wise. Sometime I wish I was 30, but mostly I don't. I guess I'd like my 48 year old mind and a 30 year old body. How about that huh?


This Coming Week


This week's training will be a bit dicey. Right off the bat, I can't swim tomorrow because young son has to work on his science project after school and will need my help. Then he has his first baseball game tomorrow night! That should be exciting!

I will definitely run Tuesday and Thursday.

I will try to swim on Wednesday but hubby and I are going out for dinner so it might be a bit busy. If we go to the pool right after school, I might be able to fit in hill repeats before our dinner reservations at 7:30 to Garnet Rogers at the Minstrel Cafe.

Thursday
is a write-off because we have a staff meeting and the boy has a second baseball game this week.

Maybe Friday won't be a rest day?

Maybe I should do more yoga and be flexible......

Saturday, April 19, 2008

This is April?!

Woke up to snow this morning. It's April 19th. I have flowers blooming. I got a sunburn last weekend. I was going to ride my bike today! Unbelievable!


Here are two shots of my tulips. The first one was taken at noon and the 2nd was taken at 3pm. The snow is gone from the lower elevations now. I think my son's baseball practice will be a 'go' tomorrow. :)




PS Did you read this? Leave a comment so I know who has visited! Thanks. :)

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Think Global, Run Local

So did I mention I signed up for the Phedippidations World Wide Half Marathon in October? I love the concept. You sign up to do a 5km run or a half mary, you train and keep in contact with others who have signed up and are training, and then you do the run on or around the weekend of October 11/12 in your own area. Hence the Think Global, run Local. I'm assuming you post your results once you've completed your run.

So can I run a half marathon this fall? That is the question. The Okanagan International (Half) Marathon in October has been a secondary goal for me this year. I had planned to run the 10km for sure, and hopefully be able to do the half marathon. I checked out the PWWHM page a few times and finally decided to bite the bullet and register. What do I have to lose? And maybe it'll help to motivate me - I love to have goals to work toward.

So how does one train for a triathlon AND a half marathon at the same time? There are many hurdles to overcome to reach this goal. This first of which is my stupid shin splints which have plagued me over the past 6 months. I am KNOCKING ON WOOD and crossing my fingers when I say I THINK I just MIGHT have that problem solved now. I have been on two runs with my orthotics and my relaced shoes and nothing hurts. Not my shins, not the tops of my feet, not my big toe joint. Oh please, please, please let this be the solution.

I have worked my way up to a 9 min run, and 1 min walk now, and I can do a full 5km run 3 times a week without too much discomfort. I think I'm ready to start lengthening out my theoretical 'long' run on the weekend. I will start by adding a half km each week and see how that goes. I have to be careful because at the same time, I am trying to lengthen the time that I run between walk breaks. This week I am planning to do 10 min run with 1 min walk break. I guess I'll just keep on at it and see how I feel. Critical to all of this is icing after every run, and stretching LOTS. And I mean LOTS. I stretch my calves 2-3 times a day - every time I think about it. When I'm waiting in line at the grocery store, whenever.

So my goal is to work my way up to a 10km long run by the triathlon date in August. I cannot follow any sort of full or half marathon training plan as they suggest while I'm biking and swimming 3 times a week as well, but I think if I run 3 times a week and gradually increase my long run to about 10 km by the end of August, and then once the triathlon is over, switch over to a training for the half marathon, I can then run more often and start to lengthen my long runs - hopefully to be able to build up to the full 22km by October. Who knows. It might be doable. If not, I will do the 10km run in October and do my own half marathon a few weeks later.

Related Links

Phedippidations Podcast Website with Steve Runner

The Extra Mile Podcast - supportive podcast for people training for the PWWHM


On Running

To be completely honest, I do not understand why I like running. It hurts. It makes me tired. It feels like I'm pounding my body into the pavement. Often, I am watching my garmin, waiting for the next walk break. But interestingly enough, I look forward to my runs more than any other sport. I do remember the feeling I had last year when I finally got up to speed and was able to run comfortably and get 'into the zone' when running. I felt like I could run forever. I remember the awesome feeling of running my first 5km race last June and realization that I was capable of doing well if I trained. I want to get that feeling back. I enjoy the challenge of learning about my body and figuring out how to deal with the aches and pains and work through the various problems. I am nothing if not determined. I want so much to be able to run a marathon. It just takes some work and planning and working towards small goals along the way.

I watched the most amazing movie the other day. "Touching the Void" It was a true story about two young men who attempted to climb a very challenging 'unclimbable' mountain in the Andes in the early 1990's. One man was injured and had to make his way back down the mountain against insurmountable odds. The men were narrating the movie so you knew they made it, but as you were watching, you could not understand HOW he was going to be able to do it. The key was to break everything down into tiny steps. The mind cannot fathom a huge goal and will give up. But if you break it down into a small, manageable task, you can slowly work your way to your bigger goal. The men in the movie were amazingly determined and had a strength and will to live beyond anything I have every seen. The next time you are whining about how your shins hurt, watch this movie. You will never complain again. :)

"Touching the Void"

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Training Plan Adjustments

First off - my eyes are about the same. I am supposed to go back on the Flarex now two times a day and I can't get an after school appointment until May 5th. I will see how I feel next week and if it's not better, then I might take a half day off and go in to see the eye doc sooner. My new Rudy Project sunglasses are not in yet either. :(

Training Plans


Jesse had his baseball evaluation today and the teams are being made up this week. We are supposed to get a call in the day or so to find out the practice and game schedule. They are both week days and last year the games were at 6pm so I assume that's the same. So - guess I'll wait and see. Ill stay to watch the games, but I'll ride or run during the practices.

I managed to do 5km runs at lunch on Running Club days this week. I went out and did 1-2 laps before the kids started and then I ran with them for the last part. So I'm changing my running days to T and Th for now. Along with that change, I am thinking about changing my Saturday run to Sunday so I don't have to do all 3 on Saturdays and I'll have two days of rest before my Sunday run.

So one new tentative plan, depending on the baseball schedule is:

Sun - run, bike (E3-hilly)
Mon - swim
Tues - run, bike (F1-hill repeats or recovery)
Wed - swim, bike (F1 or recovery)
Thurs - run
Fri - off
Sat - swim, bike (brick, M1 - Tempo to NG or Rut)

Sunday, April 6, 2008

McGyver , restaurant rants, and training (of course)

I fixed my heart rate monitor!!! Teresa said my solution was very "McGyver" so she gets the credit for that term. :)

Anyhoo, did I whine yet about losing the battery cover for my HRM last week? Well I did. And I contacted Garmin but they don't sell covers. (Yeah, like I'm sure they don't have tons of them lying around in their factories, but whatever...) So I had to come up with solution because I was going crazy not having all my DATA and you know I'm DATA fiend. The battery needs to be held tightly into the recessed area and covered. I tried wadding up some paper towel and using electrician's tape to hold it in place but the monitor wouldn't work so I had to come up with something different. I looked through the junk drawer trying to find something round and disk-like, firm yet forgiving.Then I spied a stray wine bottle cork (plenty of those can found in my kitchen. :) It looked like it would be just the right circumference so I sliced off the end and tried it. It fit! I had to experiment a bit to find the right thickness, then I taped it into place with black electrician's tape. The monitor worked fine. Unfortunately, when I went for my run, I had neglected to ensure that the battery was completely covered and sweat got in and made the thing go haywire. When I got home, I had to redo it and this time, I made sure I had it completely and tightly covered with the tape. It worked perfectly on my bike ride later that afternoon.

Birthday!


Well yesterday was my birthday and I celebrated by working out of course (I mean, it WAS Saturday after all. :), and by enjoying a couple of dinners out with family. The girls each gave me nice cards, Mom gave me a card with a pretty funny birthday cheque. She wrote the amount with a couple of zeros at the end, but neglected to write the word "hundred' on the written part of the line. I laughed out loud and we decided I'd better not spend it all in one place!

Restaurant Rants and Raves

On Friday night, Mom, Carly, Angie, Duncan, Erik, and I made plans to go out for my birthday dinner. I wanted to try the Cactus Club because I'd heard they had good food and it sounded like a fun place to go but I knew it would be a busy place on a Friday night so I called ahead to find out how busy. They told me we'd typically wait for about 45 minutes for a table for 6 but they assured me we could wait in the bar. I decided that would be OK, so Erik and Mom and I headed down about 40 minutes early (6:20pm) with the other 3 to meet us around 7pm. When we got there the place was PACKED and there were no tables to be had in the bar so we had to stand. That was OK. We thought we'd just keep an eye out for a table and snag one as soon as someone moved into the dining room. After about 15 minutes or so, it became clear that no one was moving from the bar and we'd be standing for awhile so I asked the girls at the desk approximately how long the wait would be, thinking that maybe we'd move on if it was going to be too long. She assured me it would be "about 20 minutes" so we decided to wait. And wait. And wait. The others arrived and a couple of them sat at the bar and had a drink while we waited in the foyer. After about 40 minutes, Erik checked and they told us that there was only one more group ahead of us. OK. Wait some more. After more time passed, we checked again and found out we were next. At this point, we'd been waiting well over an hour and were thinking about leaving but since the table sounded imminent, we decided to stay. After another 25 minutes, we checked again. "Oh the people are just eating their dessert - it shouldn't long now." JUST EATING THEIR DESSERT? I thought they were paying their bill 20 minutes ago? By now, we'd been waiting an hour and 40 minutes. I asked to use their phone book but they didn't have one so I went outside and called directory assistance and called the White Spot and asked if they had a table for 5 available. She said yes and I told her I was in line at another restaurant but I was tired of waiting. She told me she was putting the menus on the table to hold it and I said I'd be right there. I waltzed back into the Cactus Club and announced rather loudly that I had menus ON the table at another restaurant and that we were leaving. Argh. The staff was concerned and we told them, it's not the wait that upsets us, it's the pretense that we're only moments away from getting a table when they know for a fact, that it'll be much longer. Give me a break.
So I did have a great dinner, with great people, and to heck with the stupid Cactus Club.

Last night, Erik took me out for my actual birthday dinner. We made reservations for 7pm at the Wild Apple Grill and were given a lovely table right by the window. We had a bottle of wine and the Tandoori Chicken tapas to start, then I had the Westcoast Hotpot which was similar to the Thai Curry I've had in Tofino but with noodles instead of rice. It was very good but I couldn't eat all the noodles. We had lime cheesecake mousse for dessert. It was a lovely evening. I am a lucky girl!

What a difference reservations make. I am offended at restaurants who refuse to take reservations simply because they are so popular 'they don't have to'! Why do you presume that you do not need to give good service just because the younger set is willing to put up with bad service? It's really too bad. And it does seem to be the restaurants that the 20-somethings like that do not offer reservations. It really irritates me I understand that they may not want to block off their entire restaurant with reservations, but they could definitely have a portion (2/3?) for reservations and a portion for walk-ins. I dunno. Someone explain it to me please. In the meantime, I think I will refuse to frequent restaurants that have this policy. I find I end up feeling very powerless, insulted, and disrespected to be left waiting for an undetermined amount of time.

My Ratings

White Spot 9/10 ~ good food, excellent service, almost perfect for a birthday dinner
Wild Apple Grill 9/10 ~ food was wonderful, service was excellent. (Normally, I'd rate the Wild Apple Grill higher than the White Spot but the White Spot got bonus points for saving me from my Cactus Club plight.)
Cactus Club 0/10 ~ no idea about the food - none of the waitresses even brought us the complimentary appies they were passing around to other patrons. service was deplorable. No one offered us drinks either. They were deceptive when I called ahead, and worse yet, they were deceptive when I was right there waiting and they KNEW how long the wait would be. And if they truly did NOT know, then they are still in the wrong for their lack of knowledge about their own business.


Training


I guess I really should talk about Tri Training today shouldn't I? Well, I will be but I gotta go get something to eat and put on a load of wash. Later...

OK. I'm back. I know. It seemed like I was only gone for a second but REALLY I was gone for hours. And I did eat some toast. And I put in a load of wash. And I cleaned up my bedroom. And I rode 40km.

So here's the current training plan.

Sun - long bike
Mon - run, swim
Tues - bike - intervals or hill repeats
Wed - run, swim
Thurs - bike - intervals or hill repeats
Fri - rest
Sat - long run, swim, ride if I feel like it


And here are my current considerations and adjustments to make.

Swimming.

I checked out the YMCA on Saturday and loved it.

• It is only 7 minutes further to drive.
• I can do lane swimming anytime from 6 am to 10 pm!
• There is public swimming from 12-5 so Jesse could swim while I do a workout.
• There are lots of good riding opportunities in the area so Erik can do the TT route while I swim, until I can drive myself.
• For an extra $15 a month I can upgrade to the cushy "upstairs' changerooms which are for members only, carpeted, no kids, bigger, nicer lockers, hair dryers, curling irons, couches, computer with internet, TV, water, showers, towels, shampoo, conditioner, coffee, yadda yadda. Erik says go for it.
• The monthly pass WITH the upgrade costs about the same as my Rec Centre Swim Pass ($33+) plus a 3 month punch card at the CNC ($25+).
• I get one session with a coach at least once every 2 months.
• I am almost positive that the Master's Swim Club in included.

So.... in light of these findings, it seems like a pretty easy decision. That being said, I have a free week-long trial membership so I am going to go for a swim twice this week and see how it goes. I still have to get my money refunded from the Rec Centre as well. Hope that isn't a problem...

Running


My running has been coming along fine. I did 2 days with 6 minute run intervals with 1 min walking in between, then did some 7 minute intervals on my Saturday run. I have noticed that I feel SO much better when I run on Saturday than when I run on the week days. It could be because of two different things. I run after a long day of being on my feet during the week, and there's only one rest day between runs during the week. On Saturday, I run in the morning, Friday was a rest day and it's been TWO days since I ran last. I also prefer running at home because there's less traffic and no exhaust to smell.

My shins have been sore but they don't seem to bother me while I'm running. So I'll just keep on running I guess. I do lots of stretching, icing, hot baths and rubbing the knots out. This week, I'm planning to do 8 minute run intervals. That brings me to my new dilemma.

Running Club starts at school this week. I really want to run with the kids - it's important to them. I usually run 5km on M and W and I don't think it would be good for my shins to add 2-3 km on T and Th as well. They really need the rest break at this point. I don't think it'll be possible to increase my noon run to 5km. I just won't have enough time to do that, AND cool off and eat my lunch afterward. I might try it though. My plan this week is to run 2km with the kids at noon, and then run another 3km after school. Or maybe I'll run 3km in the morning before work, and then run 2km at noon. Either way, I will break up my 5km run and do it on T, Th instead of M, W. Wahine thinks that it shouldn;t affect my endurance too much to break it up. I figure I'll be able to tell when I do my Saturday runs anyway. Running Club only lasts for 5 weeks so it should work out ok.

Well - if I run on T and Th instead, when should I swim and bike? That is the question.

Sun - long bike
Mon - swim
Tues - run, bike hill repeats around suppertime?
Wed - swim
Thurs - run, bike intervals or hills after school. Brick?
Fri - rest
Saturday - run, swim (maybe bike)

or

Sun - long bike
Mon - hill repeats around suppertime
Tues - run, swim
Wed - bike intervals or hills after school. Brick?
Thurs - run, swim
Fri - rest
Saturday - run, swim (maybe bike)

For the answers to these and many other burning questions, stayed tuned...

And hey, if you actually made it to the bottom of this horrendously long post, and you're still not bleary-eyed, why not hit the comment button below and say "I read it!". I am assuming no one ever reads this which is fine with me really, but I AM curious as well...

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Eye am slowly going crazy

So when did I last write? A week ago? Did I say that the eye doctor told me some people often see improvement within a few days of stopping the Flarex? Well I guess I'm not SOME people. For the first couple of days, my eyes were about the same - up and down. Then for the past 5 days in a row, they've been pretty bad. They are slightly better immediately after I put Refresh drops in, but then they go double again. I can hardly read things on the board in class, or see people's faces, or recognize details on larger things from a distance. It's freakin' driving me CRAZY!!!!!!!! Every morning I wake up hoping to be able to see a bit better, and for the past 5 mornings, I even look blurry and distorted in the mirror. Argh. I don't know if I should make yet another appt with the eye doctor or not. I always go in, listen to what he has to say, and leave feeling optimistic, and then 3-4 days later, I'm frustrated again.

I've been using the Muro 128 drops 2-3 times a day. I stopped using the ointment at night because it seemed to making my eyes gummy in the morning and it seemed like that was affecting my sight. It may not be though because it has not improved in the past 3 mornings without it. I put Refresh drops in 2-3 times during the night because they are so dry, and probably 6-10 times during the day.

I am still finding it really hard to feel normal and to function mornally. I DO all the regular stuff but I feel weird and 'off'. I've been going for runs and that's working out ok although I sometimes stumble a bit if the ground is uneven. I am just more careful, that's all. I have been riding but it's still pretty freaky riding fast downhill or even just riding fast on the flats so I've been a bit more cautious and Erik rides with me in traffic etc and he lets me lead so I have some clear space in front of me. I am getting better at 'reading' the road so it's not quite as bad as it was at first. I really can't get into hard riding until my eyes clear up though and it pisses me off that I can't get glasses or contacts to help me see.

Anyway, I guess that's just where I'm at right now. I am rather impatiently waiting for something good to happen. I can't wait. The ONLY reason I am optimistic at all is because my visual acuity is good and I can see quite well when I have a clear film of liquid in my eyes so it probably only is a case of waiting for the cornea to heal. I have 4 colleagues who've been through this and the ones who did PRK have had similar experiences. They told me to be patient, but in reality, my eyes are healing much more slowly than theirs did...

Training


My training is a little bit hit and miss right now but I'm doing OK I think. My running has been the only consistent part and that's good because I really need to work on that more than anything else. My biking will be fine once I can get back on it. For now, I'm going to do hill repates once a week because I don't have to see well to do that. And I'll do at least one longish ride with Erik and hopefully, once faster ride with Erik as well. He's riding more often and can hopefully do his hard, fast rides when he's alone so he doesn't mind going a bit easier and staying with me a couple times a week. I really need to get on swimming but at least I know that will come fast again once I'm in the pool. So here's the update, one sport at a time.

Running


I know I wrote last that my shin splints were much better according to my MT. And I do think she's right because they (hradly) hurt when I run. But they do send me thru the roof if I push on them. I am trying to stretch and ice and rub the knots out the best I can. However, now that I'm up to 6 minutes of running, and 28-30 minutes of running total (5km), they are hurting again. I am hoping that I can just keep on working through it. I should probably make another massage appt just in case though. I'll email her tomorrow I guess. Next week I see the orthoped so we'll see what she says too. I ran Monday and Wednesday after school and did 5km total in about 36 minutes. I still walk for 1 min after every 6. Next week I hope to run 8 minutes. I hope. Then my time should decrease too. We'll see.

Swimming


Well I have a new problem. Today, Jesse was off at his Dad's and I really wanted to swim because I couldn't go on Monday as planned. Erik wanted to ride and right now I can't drive myself to the pool so that makes it really hard. I have to mess up their plans if I want to swim. Anyway, we threw Erik's bike in the van and he dropped me off at the pool and went off to ride hard in NOrth Glenmore for an hour while I swam Great plan right? Wrong. I went into the pool and found out they've cancelled the 5-6pm lane swim times from now on. What a piss off! The only times are during the day (or 6am, yeah right). If I want to swim during the week, I have two choices. Share a single lane with a bajilliong other displaced adults during the public swim time from 7-8:30pm (not great but maybe doable IF I can drive myself). or go to adult swim times o T and Th which is 8:30-9:30. Too late for me. That was the reason why I didn't join the Masters program. Ugh. I may have to ask them to refund my money for my 3 month swim pass I jsut bought. I dunno.

But I HAVE to swim 3 times a week or I wont' be ready for the triathlon so either I start going in the evenings or I look into the YMCA. I went to the website and checked out their memberhsip options. Twice as much money, but LOTS of options, including gym time, free programs, and ALL DAY lane swimming. ALL DAY!!! I could even take Jesse with me and he could swim for fun while I did lengths. Erik said he could come out too and ride the TT route during that time. Of course, the biggest problem is that it's a 30-40 minute drive depending on traffic. Oh how I wish the new pool was open... Only 4 minutes away, and 50m olympic sized pool Sigh.... Only one more year....

Mission Aquatic Centre Scheduled to open March 2009


Another eye update


One final note - I ordered some coolio sunglasses. Rudy Project Rydon 2 with polarized lenses. A lotta money but oh soo nice... Should get them in another week or so. Erik and bought them for our birthdays... :)