Thursday, June 23, 2011

Wasa Race Report

I raced the Wasa Olympic triathlon last weekend...my BIG goal was to finally break 50 minutes for a 10km in a tri. And I did!! 49:57 baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOL!!!! Hey, every second counts.

My total time was 2:29:08 -- a 10 minute improvement despite the fact that the bike course was totally changed this year from the nice flat and fast route to a hilly one. (Going towards Fort Steele instead of heading towards Invermere. The last time I did this race I did it in 2:24, but that doesn't count as the swim course was short, so I compared the results to the race before that one.) Plus, I ended up 10th female overall. Including the real fast girls. :) :) (They also remove the top 5 women from the AG standings, so I ended up being 2nd in my age group...I'm more pleased with my 10th OA though!)

Swim -- 28:12 (not too bad! Hee-hee!!)
The Wasa swim is the best and kindest swim in triathlon. They sent all the Oly women off together and there was no clawing/grabbing/frustration. It was so nice! This was also the first time in a race I did 2 dolphin dives at the beginning -- Hee-hee!! :) :)

Bike -- 1:11:01 (again, not too bad, the course is hillier, so I'll take it)
Not too much to say here -- a great ride.

Run -- 49:57
Great run for me! The biggest triumphs for me were the following:
Not succumbing to the negative thoughts and fear of seeing faster girls catch up to me. The last time I raced here, there was a woman on an out and back who gave me "the look" and I sort of thought to myself, "Wow, she looks so determined, if she catches me, she deserves it." Well, guess what she did. This year, I was READY.

There was another girl who was chugging along but I said to myself, "Hang on Julie! You deserve this!" I did it. :) I did get passed by some women, but not by that one. I held on until the end. :)

You have got to hand it to the race organizers -- they do the best post race food -- tons of watermelon, oranges, bananas, canteloupe and grapes. I didn't partake of the macaroni salad and I tried the chili but it was gross (sorry, but it was!), but the fruit was a godsend. After that I craved nothing but KETHCUP CHIPS and SNOWPEAS. The craving overtook all my senses. Hahahhaha -- so funny how your body knows EXACTLY what it needs -- LOL. When I finally dug into some ketchup chips, I had major ketchup-chip-quiver-tail going on. ;)

Onto other news...

A few months ago, I began making more changes to my daily nutrition needs. I did a bit of poking around the internet reading other people's blogs, and decided to try some new things...

First I eliminated dairy. This was sort of easy. Although I ate LOTS of cottage cheese and yogourt, I always felt bloated and *not right*. Next was eliminating grains and pasta and bread. This I had to do with an all or nothing approach. It is far too easy to TRY and incorporate more vegetables into my diet and then fill in the gaps with bread or pasta. By eliminating all breads and pasta, I had no choice but to add more vegetables. When the pasta went, the yams, squash, carrots and bananas moved in. You can't fool around with replacing carbs when training for multiple Ironman races.

My body has responded very well to this type of nutrition. I went down 2 swimsuit sizes! That is right...TWO SWIMSUIT SIZES!! I 've always been a 36/10, then I moved down to a 34/8. The day that my suit became baggy before it was worn out, I was shocked....could it be that I needed to go down another size? I was hesitant when I asked to try on a 32/6...the suit looked so tiny. How was my bum going to fit in there?

But it fit! I haven't had to *watch* what I eat or how much to eat. I eat all the veg, fruit, meat, eggs I want. If I am hungry I eat. Basically this means I graze all day long. Plus, I have the energy to get all my sessions in.

For bike nutrition whilst training, I use water, baked yam slices, and bananas. That's what I've used all winter and spring. Now that the temperatures are finally warming up I'll start throwing some Nuun into the mix, but keeping it simple works for me. :)

The local outdoor pool has opened and it is bliss swimming in the fresh air. :)

And one more thing....

I am completely addicted to HBO's new series Game of Thrones. I cannot wait until next season -- it is the best series I have ever seen. The story-telling is totally unconventional -- time and time again my jaw will drop open at the events unfolding. Usually such physical reactions are restricted to really, really good books...I LOVE how the series challenges assumptions I had about story-telling itself. Assumptions I didn't even know I had!

Plus, there is Drogo. Oh. My. God. I have only ever had one other movie-star crush before this and it was Horatio Hornblower from an A&E series years ago. LOL. Poor Mike, has had to deal with me giggling and rewinding scenes to watch Drogo over and over again. Hahahahahahaha!!!
Every time there is a scene with him in it, I could feel Mike's eyes on me...waiting for a reaction. Of course, that just makes me even more self-aware. LMAO.






10 comments:

Molly said...

Congrats on a super speedy race!!!

Now i'm going to have to check this show out...

Jen said...

Congrats on an awesome race!! I probably cheered you on the run and didn't even know it! Congrats!!!

Sara Gross said...

You know that i love you, but just have to say... THAT'S your crush?? So its safe to say you like them a little neanderthal?? Also, ketchup chips and "what your body needs" can not go in the same sentence!!

In all seriousness, very great race and fun to see you moving to the next level. Yay!

Julie said...

BAHAHAHA!! Seriously, if you watch the show, you will see what I mean...SERIOUSLY! LOL.

I've gotten Mike to grunt a few times though. LMAO!!! You know it is true!

Outed by the ketchup chips...heh-heh-heh.

KK said...

Congrats Jules! There's nothing better than coming off an injury and kicking some major ass to show the world that you're baaaaaack! You are such a stud!

Lisa Ulrich said...

Julie! First of all, a BIG congrats on your awesome race! You killed it - especially that run! That is so great that you were able to keep all the negative thoughts at bay, I totally understand as that is something I am working on as well.

And dropping 2 swim sizes? Wow - amazing! Keep up the great work! I don't think I could drop the grains from my diet - i'm all about the bagel for breakfast, cereal, etc!

Looking forward to seeing you at GWN - will you be at the pre-race dinner? Maybe I'll see ya there!

Keith said...

What do you mean, the OTHER way!!!??? There are some serious hills that way.

After a race like that, you get to eat whatever you want. It's more about the mental, than the physical, at that point.

There's going to be nothing left of you soon! And you were never a big girl to begin with, even if you did think your bum was huge.

Julie said...

Lisa -- I won't be at the pre-race dinner, but I just KNOW that I am going to run into you! It's a small enough venue, I'm sure I'll see you race morning!! :) :) We can meet --- yay!! :)

Amber Dawn said...

Awesome race! And I agree with Sara, not so sure on the crush...
:)

Jenna said...

Um Julie, your crush is.... CREEPY. Seriously, you better be willing or he will take you anyway :) Awesome race! I am so proud and happy for you.

:)