The Big Sha-Bang!
As many of you know, on July 21st the competed in the race I had been training all year for, the Door County Half Ironman!
Going in to race weekend, I felt so many different emotions. I knew people told me this would happen, but I didn't realize what an impact they would have on me. Waking up on Sunday morning, I felt ready. I was excited and nervous. As I had my peanut butter thinwich, I began to cry. Not because of nerves, but thinking of how far I have come since January. Mentally and physically I had changed so much, mostly because of my desire to compete in this race.
As we made our way down to transition, I was ready to get the show on the road! With about 30 minutes until race start, I wiggled into my wet suit, gave hugs, and made my way toward Lake Michigan.
My wave went off at 8:16am, and my heart rate immediately went through the roof. With about 50 other women in my age group around me and small swells in the water, I just couldn't get into a groove. After side stroking my way to the turn buoy and letting my heart rate come down, I finally was able to swim like I had practiced for so many months.
After 50 minutes and 38 seconds, I was on my way to T1 where I heard Amy cheering me on for doing the right thing with the wet suit stripper, saw Craig, Laura, Tim, Tracy, and Lauren!
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| Nose Picking Swim Finish! |
Quickly, I hopped on the bike for a 56 mile out and back through Door County. Going into the bike, I was hopeful that I could complete it at a speed of 15 miles per hour. After the first hour, I realized that I was going to exceed my goal. This made me a little nervous, but I felt great the whole bike. I maintained my nutrition, and rolled into T2 at a pace of 16.1 mph.
Now, I was ready for the run! I came out of transition to see Craig, Tim, and Laura waiting for me. Craig ran the first quarter of a mile with me, and we went over how I was feeling. Then, I headed out for my 13.1 mile journey. For the first two miles, I felt great. Then, into mile 3 my stomach really started to bother me. I just felt glazed over. I saw Amy S. and Amy MG around mile 4, and they reassured me to take it one step at a time. From there I maintained a run/walk pace for about a mile.
As I came up on mile 5, I met a few guys who were going about my pace. I thought I would pass the time by chatting with them about races, and it got to to mile 6. At mile 6 I started to feel like myself again, and saw the first large climb of the run. Here I made friends with a gentleman in his 70's who will be competing in his 19th Ironman and 9th Kona this fall. He really helped me get through 6 & 7.
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| Craig and I climbing the bluff. |
As I continued on, mile 8 was a walk/run pace. Then, at mile 9 I hit another wall, as I climbed the "bluff". About 2/3 of the way up the climb, I saw Craig running down the hill! He had come to push me through the next few miles. From miles 10-12 Craig and I stuck together. He asked me about the race and helped push me to pass the time. I was so grateful to have him with me.
Thank you to everyone who stuck with me on this journey. The triathlon family I have joined is amazing, and I look forward to many more races, friendships, and fun. I have a new outlook mentally and physically, and I am proud to say I made all of these changes.
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| FINISHER! |
Cheers,
Samantha
Verona Triterium: Rain, Mud, and Hills
A few weeks ago, I competed in my first olympic distance triathalon. The Verona Triterium is a .93 mile swim, 25 mile bike, and 6.1 mile run known for it's three loops around around the quarry, steep hills on the bike, and shirt grinds on the run.
This was the first race that Craig and I were both competing in, so I was very excited since this was his first tri since Ironman Louisville 2012. As we both loaded our gear in to the car that morning, the clouds started rolling in, and I knew we were in for a rainy day. Luckily, when we arrived at transition, the rained stopped, and we were able to get set up.
After saying "good luck" to all my friends, and giving Craig a good luck kiss, my wave was off! We headed out on a 3 loops swim through the quarry. The only part that threw me off was that between loops we had to exit the water, run around a tree, and re-enter the water for the next loop! Once I got into a groove and settled my heart rate, I was just fine, besides the rain. It was great practice to be swimming with a large group of people in preparation for Door County.
I finished the swim in 38 minutes and was off to the bike. By this time the ground was pretty wet, and I was running through mud on the way to T1. Because the sky was so dark, I didn't wear any sunglasses, which resulted in lots of rain drops in my eyes! As the rain slowed down, the hills picked up. The bike was very tough, but I made it back into T2 to see lots of friends cheering me on through the slip n' slide of transition.
As I started the run I knew there would be a few grinds, but I was okay with it because I was just happy to be off of the bike. The first loop (2 miles) went just fine, and as I started the second loop, I saw that Craig had just finished. Craig saw me and decided to run a loop with me. We had a chance to talk about how his race went, and take my mind off the running. Then, I went out for my last loop. By this point I was feeling pretty fatigued, and ready to be done.
I finished the final loop with an overall time of 3:49:01.
Next up, Door County Half Ironman. I'm ready!
Cheers,
Samantha
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| Coming out of the swim |
This was the first race that Craig and I were both competing in, so I was very excited since this was his first tri since Ironman Louisville 2012. As we both loaded our gear in to the car that morning, the clouds started rolling in, and I knew we were in for a rainy day. Luckily, when we arrived at transition, the rained stopped, and we were able to get set up.
After saying "good luck" to all my friends, and giving Craig a good luck kiss, my wave was off! We headed out on a 3 loops swim through the quarry. The only part that threw me off was that between loops we had to exit the water, run around a tree, and re-enter the water for the next loop! Once I got into a groove and settled my heart rate, I was just fine, besides the rain. It was great practice to be swimming with a large group of people in preparation for Door County.
I finished the swim in 38 minutes and was off to the bike. By this time the ground was pretty wet, and I was running through mud on the way to T1. Because the sky was so dark, I didn't wear any sunglasses, which resulted in lots of rain drops in my eyes! As the rain slowed down, the hills picked up. The bike was very tough, but I made it back into T2 to see lots of friends cheering me on through the slip n' slide of transition.
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| Finishing up the Run! |
I finished the final loop with an overall time of 3:49:01.
Next up, Door County Half Ironman. I'm ready!
Cheers,
Samantha
The Chronicles of the Once Unathletic Triathelete
After much hesitation and pressure, I have decided I might as well share my first triathalon experience.
After much hesitation and pressure, I have decided I might as well share my first triathalon experience.
I'll call this the Chronicles of the Once Unathletic Triathelete.
While many of you know this, some of you may not...Just about 7 months ago, I was an unathletic yogi who attended Dragonfly frequently, and enjoyed the classes and the heat, but if you asked me to run a mile, it would take about 14 minutes (if I was lucky) and I would walk after about .5 miles.
Most of the time I considered myself to just be "unathletic", and accepted that I would never have the endurance or drive to be a triathlete. In 2012, my partner (Craig S.) was an Ironman Louisville finisher. I thought this was amazing and inspiring, but even still, I thought "That would never be me, it's Craig's thing".
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| IM Louisville 2012 |
At this time we lived in a small town in Ohio, attended grad school, and had very few friends because they had all jet setted, while we remained with our noses in books in a town of 20,000 people. Training became Craig's outlet, mine was sleep. At this time, I was my highest weight ever, and my lowest self esteem ever.
Fast forward to June 2012, when we packed our bags to move to Madison, Wisconsin! This is when I joined Dragonfly Hot Yoga, and soon after met Amy. I immediately connected with her because she often discussed triathalons and I was learning the lingo from Craig, 2 months away from IM Louisville.
Amy invited Craig and I to attend the APG class at Dragonfly that winter, and we hesitantly attened. Afterward, we went to Buffalo Wild Wings with many of you. I remember everyone being so friendly, and Craig discussing training. Chris Lopez asked me, "so, what do you do?" and I responded, "yoga", and he immediately flipped the conversation from bikes, wet suits, and nutrition to something I could relate to. From that moment on, I started to feel that I was around people who were so encouraging and non-judgemental.
I went home that night and thought to myself, "I'm going to do a triathalon".
Several weeks passed, and I was secretly doing research, without ever mentioning it to anyone. Then, one evening, I told Craig, "I am going to do Door County Half Ironman in July".
Shocked, as I had never ran a 5K, Craig said "okay, let;s do it."
I still don't think he believed me (for about 5 months).
Fast forward to May-
APG mates' have become our Madison family. I had competed in my first 5K, 10K, half marathon, OWS, Key West Trip. I was 20 pounds lighter, my confidence has sky rocketed, and I felt like I was becoming more of a better person everyday.
The time had come to compete in my first tri...Lake Mills.
We arrived on race day, and I was nervous, yet excited. I through on my borrowed wet suit (thanks, Karla!), sprayed on some lube type substance that is an over priced WD-40 that swore it would help me pull that thing off faster, and headed to the water.
Everyone around me seemed so nervous. "Those are big waves", "They reversed the swim course", "Do you see all those people panicking in the water?".
For some reason, all that didn't matter to me. All I knew was that I was getting in that water! The horn went off, and myself and all the other novice women took off. I think I saw 5 women being pulled out of the water, and about 10 men. Mr. Lopez taught me when I began to panic, just to take deep breaths, and "don't kick so damn hard".
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| Exiting the Water |
Surprisingly, I started passing people (how did that happen?), and made my way out of the water in just over 10 minutes.
I saw Emily Lopez, Craig, Amy, and The Serraults on my way to transition, threw off my wet suit, and away I went.
The bike was very cold and windy, but hey, I made it through. Little did I know, I have a big ring on my bike! So, I rode about 15.5mph all in the small ring. (Thanks Tracy and Jessi, next time tell me these things before the race :))
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| Starting the bike |
I transitioned to the run, where I saw all my favorite people cheering me on.
I headed off on the run (where I felt like I was moving like a snail), and saw Mr. Lopez. He yelled, "You're my hero!" So, it gave me a little boost to the finish.
I crossed the finish line to receive hugs from everyone. Tears from Amy, hidden tears from Craig, and a 9:12 pace on the run.
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| Heading in to the finish! |
Overall, I'll take a 1:46 for my first triathalon ever. Next up, Verona!
Thank you for making me stronger (mentally and physically), more light hearted, more confident, and a better friend/partner. I am happy to say I am no longer the slightly overweight girl who was on the sidelines cheering for her Ironman boyfriend.
Soon, Craig and I will be out there doing one together. I couldn't have done it without all of you! I look forward to many more races, workouts, parties, and continued friendships. For those of you I haven't had a chance to chat with yet, I'm excited to be apart of the crew.
Cheers to an awesome summer ahead of us-
Samantha
Just Keep Running: Madison Half Marathon
So, I have to admit, I am a little behind on my posts!
On May 26, I ran my first half marathon here in Madison. I had spent the last 5 months working on my running endurance and speed. My longest run before the event was 10 miles, and I went into the event feeling good about being able to complete 13.1 miles, but I didn't know how fast I would be able to do it.
Last fall I was running a 14 minute mile. That's right, you could walk faster than I could run. I couldn't run more than about 1/2 a mile without feeling winded and cramped. Over the course of running more frequently, I could sustain a 10:45 minute mile for the duration of 10 miles, although I was apprehensive I could do this on race day.
With that being said, I wanted to give myself a half marathon goal time. I told myself that if I ran the half marathon in less than 2 hours and 30 minutes, I would be happy. I told myself that if I could run my half marathon in less than 2 hours and 15 minutes, I would be ecstatic.
On race day Craig and I made it downtown around 6:15am, to meet our APG crew. I was very nervous yet excited. We made our way down to the start, and off I went.
On May 26, I ran my first half marathon here in Madison. I had spent the last 5 months working on my running endurance and speed. My longest run before the event was 10 miles, and I went into the event feeling good about being able to complete 13.1 miles, but I didn't know how fast I would be able to do it.
Last fall I was running a 14 minute mile. That's right, you could walk faster than I could run. I couldn't run more than about 1/2 a mile without feeling winded and cramped. Over the course of running more frequently, I could sustain a 10:45 minute mile for the duration of 10 miles, although I was apprehensive I could do this on race day.
With that being said, I wanted to give myself a half marathon goal time. I told myself that if I ran the half marathon in less than 2 hours and 30 minutes, I would be happy. I told myself that if I could run my half marathon in less than 2 hours and 15 minutes, I would be ecstatic.
On race day Craig and I made it downtown around 6:15am, to meet our APG crew. I was very nervous yet excited. We made our way down to the start, and off I went.
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| APG Runners! |
There were moments when I thought, oh I totally got this! Then, moments would hit when I thought holy cow! Can I make it any further? Craig and Amy Mosher- Garvey were there for me all along the way. They gave me encouragement when I needed it, and pushed me through to Mile 10.
The last 3 miles, I was on my own. I knew I had begun to slow down, but I wanted to keep a steady pace. I went a little fast out of the gate, so I was hopeful I had some flexibility to still meet my 2:15 goal.
I ran the last few miles with a man from Milwaukee, and he helped pass the time when my toes weren't so happy. Once I reached Capital Square, I got my medal and saw Craig glowing with pride. It was an awesome moment. I went from the girl who couldn't run .5 miles, to someone who just ran 13.1.
The last 3 miles, I was on my own. I knew I had begun to slow down, but I wanted to keep a steady pace. I went a little fast out of the gate, so I was hopeful I had some flexibility to still meet my 2:15 goal.
I ran the last few miles with a man from Milwaukee, and he helped pass the time when my toes weren't so happy. Once I reached Capital Square, I got my medal and saw Craig glowing with pride. It was an awesome moment. I went from the girl who couldn't run .5 miles, to someone who just ran 13.1.
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| Craig and I Post-Race |
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| WAHOO! |
Then, I went to the tent to get my official time...2 hours and 12 minutes! I ran at a 10:08 min/mile pace! I am still in awe at how much once can accomplish with perseverance. I am looking forward to this summer!
Cheers,
Samantha
Cheers,
Samantha
My Daily Dose of Stillness
I am constantly on the go. Wake up, work, volunteer, workout, dinner, friends, family, boyfriend, dog, and life in general each have their own demands. Typically, by Wednesday or Thursday of each week, I am on overload and need some sort of rejuvination.
A usual week night wind down would include talking with Craig, eating dinner, watching TV, and social networking. Most would consider each of these things "relaxing". What I have realized is that what I actually needed was to quiet my mind. Each of these activities involve some type of stimulation, when in reality I needed stillness.
Whether it be sitting on the patio with my eye closed listening to the birds, laying in the bathtub, stretching after a workout, or driving down the road with no music and the windows down, these activities are now becoming part of my daily routine. I am finding that these few moments of stillness allow me to become more in tune with my needs and perspective. My mind doesn't seem so scattered, and I am embracing each day (not just the weekend).
This aspect of mental health is just as valuable as any physical activity. As I continue training, I am learning more about mental strength. Physical changes are those you can see and feel, while mental toughness can be more of an ebb and flow. These moments of stillness serve as reminders to both my physical and mental abilities.
I am in love with the person I am becoming, mentally and physically. As I continue to evolve, I am learning more about my inner stregth and capability. My daily dose of stillness is one way to appreciate myself and share this gratitute with those around me.
Cheers to Continued Evolution,
Samantha
Shamrock Shuffle!
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| Craig and I on Race Day |
Arriving downtown, I was a bit nervous because I didn't know what to expect. I had walked in 5K's in the past, but never ran or had been timed. Once my partner and I got going, I was really enjoying myself. The hills were tough, but surprisingly not too bad. I realized that while these races are a personal goal, there is a community of runners who were supportive of others.
I have been pleased with my progress thus far, and hope to continue improving. I will beginning my official training plan in 12 days. I am getting more and more excited for the next few months.
Stay tuned for more information on my progress, workouts, and fun!
April
Mad City Relay
May
Madison Glow Run
Madison Half Marathon
June
Lake Mills Sprint Tri
Verona Olympic Tri
July
Door County Half-Iron!
I am really beginning to feel that I am changing my life for the better, to simply be a happier and healthier verison of myself!
Cheers,
Samantha
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Swim, Bike, Run!
.jpg "Life Is One Big Transition Swim-Bike-Run Car Magnet")
As I am continuing on my quest toward the Door County Half Ironman this July, each week I am noticing small but significant changes in my body. This past weekend was my biggest training weekend yet.
Swim- Let’s be honest, I have never been a swimmer. In fact, when I first got into the pool after signing up for Door County, I didn’t even know how to turn my head to breathe. Over the past two months, I have been watching YouTube videos, doing drills, and spending 2-3 days a week doing pool workouts. Two months ago, I couldn’t swim 50 meters without getting winded. This past weekend, I swam 1,200 meters! I am finding my time in the pool to be a stress reliever. I am amazed by the amount of improvement I have made in such a short period of time. I am actually very excited for summer’s open water swims!
Bike- Since training began; I have been riding my bike on the wind trainer at home and attending weekly spinning classes. This weekend, my gym held a fundraiser for Gilda’s Club, a cancer support community here in Madison. This fundraiser was a 2-hour spinning class that included hills, intervals, speed work, and flat road. This was my longest ride to date, and I estimate I went about 30 miles. It felt great!
Run- Each day that I put on my running shoes I feel like I am making progress. I notice an increase in my endurance and speed. This weekend, I ran 7 miles for the first time. Not only was my pace almost 2 full minutes faster per mile than when I first started, but I felt like I could keep going! The idea that a workout in one discipline assists you in another is fascinating to me.
This time last year if you would have told me that I would be where I am today, I would have laughed at you. The beauty in this is that I’ve only just begun. I love the physical, mental, and emotional changes that are happening! I’m looking forward to sharing more of this journey with you.
Cheers,
Samantha
___________________________________Mind Over Matter
Let's be honest, I have never considered myself an athlete...until now. Over the past serveral weeks, I have been slowly gaining momentum in training for the Door County Half Ironman. I have been dedicating several hours each week to becoming a better version of me, physically and mentally.
Each week, I am noticing positive changes in my body. I am using muscles swimming that I never use in other workouts, I am getting faster on the bike, and my endurance is increasing for longer runs. I feel that while my progress is small, these small improvements are starting to build on one another, creating a ripple effect, snowballing my achievements.
When I hear the term, "Mind Over Matter", I always thought it was partly true, but that physical limitations may not be overcome. Each day of completing another workout, I am realizing I am not only gaining physical strength, but also mental strength. I am feeling more confident, prepared, and worthy of my accomplishments.
Therefore, as I continue through the "Year of Me", I am finding more reasons to celebrate small successes in my physical capabilities, but also my happiness. I encourage each of you to find a challenge in 2013. By setting a goal, sticking to it, and applauding oneself along the way, we will transform ourselves.
Push yourself to change.
Cheers,
Samantha
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Trying Something New...
In June, my partner and I took the 9 hour journey north to move to Madison, Wisconsin. The day after we arrived, I decided I would spend some time searching for a yoga studio to begin my practice. I was driving through town, when I saw Dragonfly Hot Yoga. Dragonfly is a studio that offers traditional yoga classes and also fitness based courses for members to build a strong fitness base. For me, this is what I needed.
After going inside, and getting a tour from the owner, I decided to sign up for a trial month with the studio. Little did I know that joining this studio would open me up to a network of people within Madison that would begin to make it feel like home.
After the first month of learning the "yoga lingo", and feeling comfortable in 95 degree heat, I decided to become a member of the studio. My body was slowly beginning to change. I had a greater endurance, felt stronger, clearer, and healthier.
Dragonfly was encouraging members to join them for a "30 Day Challenge". In this challenge you are tasked with completing 30 classes in 30 days. The month came and went, and I had completed 30 classes! My confidence level was increasing, I was making friends, and getting in shape while doing it!
So, what does all this mean for you?
I found that by trying something new and completely outside my comfort zone, I was put in a situation that encouraged vulnerability. When I walked into Dragonfly for the first time, I didn't know a single person, or any pose besides downward dog. Now, I show off to my friends that I can land crow.
I'm encouraging each of you to find something that makes you vulnerable and give it a try. This could be a yoga class, running club, or even a lunch time walking group. I found that through my vulnerability, I was open to new people, ideas, and lifestyle changes that I had not embraced before.
Cheers to Change!
Samantha
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