Be Bear Naked

This past Sunday I hosted a Bear Naked breakfast clinic at the Sharon’s Back Triathlon. Justin raced while I set up shop and promoted Bear Naked to the athletes and spectators. There were parfaits, stickers, coupons and lots (and I mean lots) of free sample packs. It was a ton of fun and a great day for a race. There were three other Team Bear Naked athletes racing that day (seen in pic) so it was pretty neat having a crew there to support.

Hearing the horns go off for the swim waves really made me want to get back into racing! Alright, Ironman, you took enough time away from me, I’m ready to race again! For that very reason, I decided to sign up for my final triathlon of the season, making a total of 3 races left plus 1 marathon. My final triathlon of the season will be the Buzzard’s Bay Sprint, directed by the same folks as Sharon’s Back. From what I saw and heard, the races are well organized, beautiful and fun. Can’t wait! Last night I got on the trainer and did a killer 1 hr ride. I was so excited to be training again, haha! Now, less than 2 weeks away from the Cranberry Oly! YAY.

Back at it and some other random thoughts...(Justin)

We're now almost 3 weeks post IMLP and we've worked out exactly 3 times (mountain biked, a 3 mile run, and a 4.5 mile run)- we know what you're thinking...impressive.

Being a member of Team Bear Naked, Liz needs to host a race breakfast and decided to pick Sharon's Back Sprint triathlon. She picked this race because the race company (Max Performance) does a great job, the race director seems like a really nice guy, and one of my co-workers is doing his first triathlon. This left me with 2 options- race or wake up at 5am on my b-day and watch other people race (unfortunately the 3rd option of sleeping in was nixed by Liz) so I decided to race. My only goals are to have a lot of fun and maintain some dignity by not losing to a Tri-Virgin. Plus the course is flat as shown by the video below:



Now on to my random thoughts- JoJo recommended reading the book "Born to Run" so I checked it out. The book is amazing. Runner or not you should definitely read it. I was interested throughout but a couple topics were of high interest: why people run and running injuries. I've gone through a lot of knee and foot pain since I started running/triathlons and over time the pain has always gotten worse (I started sitting out workouts before Ironman b/c of sharp pains in my feet). The book covers the evolution of footwear and the semantics of human feet in a very 'non-preachy' way- though I don't think the author's a big fan of Nike.

Without breaking down the specifics of the book, it has definitely given me a new perspective on my shoes, training and diet...all 3 were on my mind well before reading this book. For shoes, I've been looking for something that will prevent foot pain. Training, I've wanted to complete some ultras and qualify for Boston and have been looking for the right plan to meet these goals. And for diet, I've been frequently looking at a more primal diet (unprocessed, natural foods). We were basically eating this way on the QT2 diet with exceptions but I definitely saw the benefits and am considering making it a full time thing. I'm sure I'll have more on this as I start serious training for the Fall/Winter races.

3 pics for the fun

Today we focus on Justin.. haha..

First off, I forgot to add this pic into my IM race report - Justin and I got to feast on McDonald's on our ride home after the race. I can't remember the last time I had chicken nuggets and fries (maybe 5 years ago?) but they were just as I remembered them. So good. Here's Justin enjoying his fries:


Second, with all the down time we've had lately, we bought the new Wii Resort to help fill some of the time. I crack up every time I watch Justin play Wii, the best is watching him play table tilt on Wii Fit : ) Here he is sword fighting:

Third, we got out yesterday for our first ride post-ironman on the mountain bikes! We headed to the Fells and took to the paths. This was my first time mountain biking on trails. I don't know if it's my thing. I'll give it a few more tries, next time with the correct nutrition and gear (need gloves!) and we'll see how it goes. Here's Justin at the top of a hill that we might or might not have had to walk up (it's much steeper than it appears!) ;)

Post-Ironman Despression Syndrome

Was reading an interesting article the other day that my sister sent along.

I am gonna go ahead and diagnose myself with PIDS (Post-Ironman Depression Syndrome). The funny thing about this article is that Justin and I had been talking about how we’ve been having these exact thoughts and feelings mentioned in the article just the day before reading it.

The article says that it is normal to feel “a bit of a letdown, kinda-lost feeling after an Ironman,” after all, you’ve been focusing on this one date for the last year and now that it has come and gone, you feel empty. “Your formerly-constant thoughts about training, racing, nutrition, transition bags, carbon aero widgets, and what-I-have-to-pack-for-my-workouts-tomorrow have now been replaced with a single, all-consuming thought: What do I do now?”

The week immediately after Ironman, it felt good to do nothing. I got to eat whatever I wanted, didn’t have to rush home for a workout, had all weekend to enjoy Boston rather than heading out of the city for long rides. That was nice. But now, it’s starting to catch up with us. Ok, the BBQ and cornbread was delicious but ugh, I don’t feel so great after eating it and I want to go for a run to feel a bit better but can’t. Walking around and shopping all day Saturday was nice, but now I have a high bill to pay and I suddenly remember why I hate living in a city filled with tourist. Coming home from work and taking time to make dinner, hang out and watch TV at regular hours is great but I’m starting to feel useless and lazy.

The article recommends that you have no races on the calendar for 8 weeks after the Ironman to ensure a proper recovery. From Lake Placid to my next race is 5 weeks apart. Justin would have been the same but decided a celebratory birthday tri was appropriate and signed up for the Sharon’s Back Sprint Triathlon on Aug 16^th, so he has 3 weeks. Neither of us wanted our season to end so early so we ended up signing up for the Pumpkinman Half on Sept. 13^th. Stupid? Probably, the article even says this is a no-no, but we’ll learn from our mistakes. Plus this race has an awesome post-race feast that includes apple and pumpkin pie – YUM!

As soon as I start to feel fresh, I’m going to begin my focus on running (unfortunately, running is the hardest on the body and therefore is the slowest to get back into). I’ll be running the Baystate Marathon with Jenny on October 18^th and we’ll both be aiming to run sub 3:45. I’m looking forward to the challenge! However, until I can start running normally again, I continue to be in limbo.