IronMatron

I got sick of the old look. I tried a bunch of pink backgrounds, but it was so bubble gum I had to go with just white. It still is slightly bubble gum, but I do like pink, and I like the way this template stretches across the screen.

On Thursday morning I head to Charlotte, North Carolina. I'm attending the level 1 USAT coaching conference. You may recall that a few months ago I was sarcastic and pissy when I didn't get into it. Then a few weeks later I got in off the wait list. So, naturally, all of my ranting and righteousness was neatly put to the side, and I signed up. I'm annoying like that.

I'm looking forward to it for a few reasons.

1. I love to sit in classes and take notes. Really. I really like that. I've spent a good portion of my life in class taking notes. If I could do it as a living, I would.
2. The kids and my ancient pooch are going to be with my in-laws. They LOVE going to my in-laws. I love that they love to go there, because then I worry less when I'm away.
3. Andy is coming with me. He's not attending the conference. Instead he plans to work and work out and sleep, and go out with me to dinner.
4. I like hotels. When at a hotel I can escape clutter and toys. I also don't have to do laundry, dishes, vacuum, or clean up little boy piss off the toilet.
5. I get to meet and hang out with Donna.

The only problem with leaving on Thursday morning is that the bulk of my working out this week is condensed into like two days. I had a big week last week (for me) and I was tired today. Monday is usually my rest day on which I just swim and lift. The pool was closed because it's President's Day, and so I just lifted and did a little biking today--putting me into even more of a deficit coming into Tuesday. I don't even want to write what I'm supposed to do tomorrow through Thursday morning. It troubles me. It troubles me greatly.

I also promised I would take my kids shopping and to Friendly's tomorrow, and I'm supposed to take a conference call from my biggest sponsor, TriBike Transport. (Love them. They are truly fab. I'm only slightly concerned about wearing their kit this season--which is WHITE. Hopefully it won't appear that I'm racing naked.) And I need to pack. And print out the five billion power point slides for the presentations. I don't want to go to bed because when I get up the craziness begins. oh mammmma.

On the working out front:
The news is, I've been working out.

I am getting slightly--ever so slightly--more powerful on the bike. I'm also not detesting the bike, which is kind of stunning, really.  I feel rather friendly toward Mrs. Z right now.

My swimming is blahhhhhhhh. I'm hoping that someday I will break out of 1:20 mode. If I work hard, I hit 100 on 1:20. If I work really hard, I hit on like 1:17. If I loaf, I hit at 1:26. The numbers just don't seem to change. At all. Even though Jen gives me the coolest, most interesting, balanced workouts. Even though I swim more than many of my tri friends. I. am. stuck.
Good news on the swimming front is that in a few weeks I'm in a meet. At said meet I decided to swim 200 IM and four 100s--back, breast, fly and free.
I am most excited about the fly. I am least excited about the breast. I fear it will take me five minutes to finish. I really, really suck at breast. (This post is boring, and that's my best line, so enjoy it.) But when I signed up for the other three I just felt like I was neglecting the poor breast again. So I signed up for it too.

Running.
I'm still smarting a bit from my race. I feel like I need to brush my teeth of it.
I know that expression doesn't make sense, but I have decided I rely too heavily on cliche, and it sort of works, doesn't it?

Anyway. I have Lara's stinking cold right now ( which is probalby why this post is lackluster). Consequently I decided that yesterday's lonnnnng run (which is not long compared to those of you training for marathon and beyond, but long for moi right now) should be run in low zone 2.
OH man. I have forgotten how truly peaceful and beautiful zone 2 (low) can be. I could have run for hours and hours. I was just zoning... it was fabulous. Best of all, I was running a fever, and the cold outside was perfect--which is probably just wrong. But who cares. It felt good.  I love running hard, but interestingly one of the gifts of running hard quite frequently is that when you just run easy it feels awesome.

Ange and I have gotten a few bites since we launched our snazzy new website.
We know it will take a long time to build what we want to build.
But that makes it even more cool and exciting. I love beginnings.