it's happening!

We are currently making our way to Oregon, enjoying a delightful overnight in Salt Lake City with my niece and her family, where we are now. They have a new tiny human who is eight weeks old, and may I recommend if you have the chance to get some baby snuggles in the days before your big race, do so [provided no one is ill - which thankfully here, they are not!] We were greeted with a wonderful home cooked fajita dinner (something that will make it's way into our menu rotation), great conversation and a divine bed for the night. I did a good stretch routine before laying down, then was totally out for the night. I feel great this morning!

On the way into town, we stopped at a favorite brewery, Templin Family Brewing. This is a nice trip for Mr. Blueberry Pancakes, too, and he deserved every ounce of that spectacular cherry plum beer he had! Many thanks to the host for suggesting it. We bought some to take with us, which I will properly enjoy on the other side of this coming weekend. While there, another employee gave us a suggestion on a coastal Oregon brewery, Breakside. I'm not sure we'll be able to check it out, but we will look for it, because, well, Clues from the Universe. 

Trip observations:

• I was having a very hard time actually LEAVING the HOUSE yesterday morning. I called myself out on it, too, recognizing there was some sort of subconscious mind game going on. Once we got on the road, all was fine and I was excited!
• We've broken the trip up into three days, because sitting is hard on my body. We pushed slightly to get to Salt Lake, but today and tomorrow can relax as we drive and take more breaks. Aiming for stops every 2 hours, for a walk and stretch break. We're in no rush. 
• Staying hydrated on the road was a challenge. Today I'll take a couple extra water bottles. My calves were tight last night. I woke up thirsty and was VERY thankful I had my big tumbler at the bedside.
• I am a much more nervous passenger on this trip. Mr. Blueberry Pancakes picked up on this, and as a result, I'm doing most of the driving (which is good, since it relaxes me and stresses him).
• Not a trip observation, but a reinforcement of something I've known for a while... I am married to the perfect partner. We are not perfect - if you know us, you know this! But we are perfect partners. And this is really a fun trip for both of us, one day in. Diamonds. 

I know it's been a whole year that I've been "on the road" to Oregon, but it feels wonderful to actually be ON THE ROAD TO OREGON. Time to continue the actual journey to the Willamette River. 

10 days out!

It is TAPER TIME! All the hard training is behind me, one more short brick and a couple shake out sessions before the race. The last weeks of training have really been great. We did an awesome 4th of July bike ride with the tri club, going in with the intent to do the shorter option. Of course, once we got there, we went for it and did the 62-miler - obviously this was before the taper started, and with my coach's blessing/suggestion to do it! It was an absolutely perfect ride, we met up with old friends, made new ones, became the pre-party entertainment for a neighborhood parade, conquered the Kathy Reynolds BUNS OF STEEL Hill Climb, and finished it all up with a 10-mile sprint to outrun the storms (which, we did). And then Sunday was the last day of the hard training, we did a big swim in the outdoor pool at Congress Park - really a glorious way to cap off all the effort. 

Tapering started Monday, and it's different than I expected. The workouts are still tough, but they are shorter! During our Trainer Road ride Wednesday, I was dying on a sprint and as we finished the block, one of the girls asked "When do we start the taper?" I busted out laughing saying "I was thinking THE SAME THING!" And it got reaaaaaallly quiet. I gave it a couple seconds, then asked if I had just hallucinated, or if she had asked 'When do we start our taper?' and EVERYONE laughed as she said "No, I said my PRINTER is out of PAPER." The mind hears what it wants to hear!

And unfortunately, the mind sort of does what it wants to do. Also on Monday, I noticed the MIND GAMES had begun! My head was full of silly questions. What if I cut my foot? What if I crash on the railroad tracks? What if I miss the swim turn into the cove? Can I do this thing when I've only done a 50-mile ride/8-mile run brick? How will I complete it, what am I thinking? And then came crazy disturbing nightmares where dead mice resurrect themselves and walk off carrying your goggles and swim cap between their large teeth, protruding from slimy, melting off little faces - EGADS. And that day began my recent run of interrupted sleep, because of said scary dreams and also worrying about logistics. Worrying is praying for what you DON'T want, but at 2AM I don't have the mental fortitude to shut that down! I know this is part of the process, I'm not surprised it's happening but it's definitely unnerving. 

So. After three nights of terrible sleep, and talking my coach's ear off about all the ridiculous things going through my head as we drove to do the last open water swim before the race, I figured perhaps it's time I reconnect with non-triathlon things that relax me. Journaling. Good fiction books. Fun podcasts. Writing a blog post. Talking to friends and loved ones. Stretching. Yoga. Yesterday I did many of those things, and I even threw in a little retail therapy for an extra boost [to be fair, I bought one thing, which I've wanted and now need, but it still felt great to buy something]. I'm doing more of these today. Mostly, I'm trying to be more present, to focus on doing things and interacting with living beings I love, and be grateful for all the blessings. I slept marginally better last night, which is progress, so I'll take it. I can nap. 

All that said. the highlight of the past week is that after our big swim on Sunday, the universe gave me THE BEST gift - an unexpected visit with my dear friend, Fiesta. He texted me out of the blue after he and his family landed in Denver, and asked if we'd like to meet up down here or in the mountains while they were in the area. No surprise, we picked the mountain option! Last time we met up, they had just had their first baby and he was a darling infant. That baby is now eight years old and has two younger siblings! It was wonderful to catch up. We were talking a lot about aging well, and Fiesta introduced me to the world of Dr. Peter Attia - he has a podcast called "The Drive" and his recent book, Outlive, is about the science of longevity. This stuff fascinates me. I know I'm training for an IM70.3, but what I am really training for is my Old Lady Body. I'm training for QUALITY OF LIFE, holding on to the best I can have, for as long as possible. So, us "old friends" here are going to keep doing all the healthy things so that we can be OLD FRIENDS. I'm really happy we got to connect! 

One more notable thing here in the taper: I've got a random punchy muscle tightness in my right leg.  Because of it, even though I had a last little brick on the calendar for today, I'm going to push that off to tomorrow. I'm guessing the pain is stress-related, but I don't want to make it worse. The workout can wait 24 hours. Very happy my coach agrees. She said definitely no running on any tense muscles, taper at this point is just to stay mentally sane - all workouts are optional. I'm doing all of the stretching and foam rolling, and I have a massage set for Monday. This afternoon I'll button up the last of my logistics, take a nap, and go to yoga, and then tonight I'll start making my pack lists. THIS RACE IS HAPPENING!! 

Despite taper weirdness [which, I understand is part of this journey] I really am grateful for the entire experience. The road to a 70.3 is not easy, and I have had so much support from family, friends and strangers. There is STILL so much in store, and much more support to come, and I am truly thankful for everyone involved. This is a real gift, and I most certainly appreciate it. Now I'm off to continue trying to stay sane. I hope you have a great healthy weekend. 

-

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." - John 14:27

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p.s. - this week on Arnold's Pump Club he talked about the importance of reconnecting with old friends. How very timely!

p.p.s. - this great little yoga session takes only 20 minutes - I did it yesterday and it was super helpful!

GO ME!

Today I finished my last big brick workout before the big event... 50-mile ride, followed by an 8-mile run with the first five miles at "race intensity." Here's what I learned:

- Ride early and remember how much you LOVE bicycling!

- Pretzels are my very good friend. ALL OF THE SALT. 

- Salt your water, if you're not the type to use sports drink with sodium [I am not]. I use Lyte Show electrolytes as an add-in, which has *some* sodium, but today added ~1/8 tsp to my water bottles. I feel great here at 10 PM. Never felt dehydrated, even while running in mid-day heat.

- If your coach tells you to run at a "race intensity" pace, it should be for the race you're training for. Last time, I went out at sprint/Olympic intensity, then crashed. This time, I aimed for a slower pace. It worked. No crash, and I was able to pick it back up after a walk break. 

- Worried about whether you can pick yourself up and get back on your pace target after a walk break? Try it in training! In general, it's really hard for me to do this - once I stop or slow down, I give up. Turns out I can actually pick it back up. That was one of the questions I wanted to answer in today's training, and I'm happy to say I surprised myself and DID IT. 

- TRAIN FOR THE WORST. While my last two big rides and bricks (before today) were miserably hot and windy and awful, it definitely built my confidence up that I will be able to handle that, if those are the conditions in Oregon. Note: I didn't train in the rain, specifically, for my upcoming race. BUT, I have done long rides in the past where I found myself in freezing rain, hail storms, thunderstorms, and long downhill stretches under downpours in the desert, and I survived. If it rains on me in Oregon, I'll be ok, I've faced it before. 

- YOU DESERVE A CROWN. No really. And since the only one available here on your bike ride is in your mouth, well, let's have that Skratch gummy energy chew pull it out for you. Thank God I didn't swallow it. 

- BE NICE TO YOU. You can't hate yourself faster, or thinner, or better, so be your own best friend and cheerleader. Miles 6-7.5 today were very tough, I was in a dark, dark place. But I really made an effort to be my own light and love and talk myself through it in a positive way. This paid off, those last two miles averaged out almost to the "race intensity" pace I started at. 

GO ME!

I'm three weeks out from Oregon. One more long run this week, and then I'm at the GLORIOUS TAPER. I feel good. I feel ready. I feel very, very grateful. Many times today I heard Father Tom in my head saying "Bow your head and pray for God's blessing." And I prayed, and I RECIEVED that blessing. What a gift. I am so very grateful I can do this. I am proud of me for DOING THIS, for working toward becoming the athlete I've wanted to be for the last 20 years. In the words of my best YouTube friend, Caroline Girvan, THIS IS A JOURNEY I NEVER WANT TO END. 

--

"Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!" (2 Corinthians 9:15, NIV)

just keep on keepin' on

I'd love to tell you I'm 100% back in the game. Workout-wise, I'm close, for sure. We had another miserable bike ride last weekend, one of those rides that makes you question all your life choices and whether or not you even like riding a bicycle. I know when I get mentally THERE that I am really, really pushed to my max. We had started late, it was HOT, and because of that, the wind and the hills, it took us nearly forty-five minutes to complete the first nine miles. We had another sixteen (with more wind and still many more hills) to go before we could turn and head back towards the start point, which would hopefully give us some relief. Somehow I managed to slog through the seven levels of whatever late-hot-windy-hilly-afternoon bicycle hell we were in, and get myself to that turnaround point. Thank goodness for a very supportive spouse, bike food, caffeine, and a cute little coffee shop in Longmont that was still open so late in the afternoon. 

I know that kind of later-in-the-day training should make the actual race seem like a piece of cake, but training doesn't need to be that hard all the time! This week, I started most of my big workouts IN THE MORNING. A lot more enjoyable, and less chance of crazy storms. And DH joined me for a glorious bonus evening ride on Wednesday night with the tri club. Ah, bicycling was fun again. :) Today was supposed to be my big brick, but due to work and the chance for early storms, I pushed it to Sunday. Believe me, I'll be out there early to finish before noon. And that'll be my last brick, then next week is my last hard week of training, before taper. THIS IS HAPPENING, PEOPLE!

The thing that isn't 100% back on track is my eating. I track what I eat in MyFitnessPal, so I can see my patterns. I can see I am not eating enough earlier in the day, and for me, getting too hungry leads to overeating later. I can also see that on the days I have sugar early, I generally consume more calories. Interesting. So I am not sure if it's training volume, or being so far off routine earlier this month when my grandma died, or residual grief... but nutrition is currently a challenge for me. To overcome this, I am re-reading some of my nutrition books and notes, which has definitely helped. I'm no longer waiting until the end of the day to track my food, I'm tracking as I eat or even pre-tracking the night before or in the morning, this is also helpful. I'm not so good at stopping myself from another handful of pretzels, or a bite of ice cream, or a half a glass of wine... these things add up! But, I can acknowledge that this week I'm doing that a lot less, and I've made a serious effort to get my nutrition on better ground. I'm not 100% there but I am feeling better, that's for sure. 

So here in the last two big weeks of training, the weather has sort of blown up my plans. So far, I've been able to adapt, thanks to the help from my awesome coach! But ADAPTING can be a challenge, too. When I looked at the weather last night, it was pretty apparent it would be stormy right after work, just as I'd be starting the workout. I really wanted to get my big brick done, I want to follow the plan, these are key training weeks! HOWEVER. Making it to the start line is the first goal, which means riding and running around in hail and tornadic thunderstorms today really wouldn't be the smartest option to meet that goal. So instead, we woke up super early this morning to do a Trainer Road ride (glad we did that, and another athlete joined us to make it even more fun!) before I left for work. It was a good workout, and amending my workout schedule was definitely the right call, as the storms rolled in while I was at work. My brick is now set for Sunday. I'll start it early, I'll enjoy it, and training continues.  

I'm enough in the game where I can see that the race should go well for me - as in, I'll finish, I'll feel strong, it will be a fun experience for my first half IronMan. And then I'll get to keep swimming and riding and rollerblading and trail running and having a great time playing outside with my friends, WHICH IS THE POINT. The only other notable thing to mention about doing all the hard race training is that I knew how the training plan would go, and that I would be very tired these two weeks, but I am more tired than I expected. It's one of those things where you can plan and anticipate, but until you're in the situation, you have no idea how it really is. Well. I am IN IT, now, and I. Am. TIRED. But it's temporary. I have just over one more week of this - I am taking extra care to go to bed on time, take naps when I feel like I need them, and let everything else go (you should SEE the state of my house, OH MY GOODNESS!) But I'm letting it go. It can wait until I'm tapering, or after the race. Other than being tired, I do feel great, physically, and I know this fatigue won't last forever. The feeling of crossing that finish line strong - THAT will last forever, so that's why I just keep on keepin' on. 

One more hard week. I can do it. And I really will do everything I can between now and July 23rd to make race day as much fun as possible! 

--

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13)

training through grief

So it took me a little bit to get back into the groove since returning from my grandma's funeral. And, workouts have felt very difficult. Partly because THEY ARE, at this point in the training, but also because sitting in a car for 25 hours turns out to be pretty darned rough on my body. Noted.

Last week I just jumped back into the workouts. I felt like lead in the pool. My head was in a fog on runs. Weather impeded my workouts and I didn't do great at finding - or asking my coach - for adequate indoor alternatives, I just made up what I thought I could do. And some days were a real struggle to do the workout - I'd procrastinate as long as possible, then rush, and still feel badly. But I did the workouts. I even did the Manitou Incline with RMTC on Thursday last week (that one needs a separate post!) But having other people for workouts makes the workout go better for me, at this phase. I need people. I don't need to talk to them, and hard workouts facilitate that, but I do need to see them. People help me get through the suck, for sure. 

The other thing that helped, this week I made out a "chore sheet" that I can check off daily. It includes:

- Complete planned training

- Brush teeth at 8PM

- Get 7+ hours of sleep

- Keep 500-800 calorie deficit - Note for this, sometimes on big workout days it is hard for me to eat back all the calories to get to only a 500 calorie deficit. And some days I can eat right through all the workout calories and then some! Since I'm trying to shed a few pounds before the race, I want to stick to ~500 deficit daily, if my body feels good there. This is really just to track how often I'm there, as I'm training. And to be mindful, because, cookies.

- Alcohol drinks tracking - Note for this, I didn't drink the week before my last tri. I had thought I didn't feel noticeably different, however I was very rested come race day, from getting great sleep all that week, and also, I ended up on the podium. So that's not nothing! I've noticed that some days I feel sluggish training... generally, the days after I have an adult beverage. Therefore, I'm tracking the when and how many. 

Incidentally, just making the chore sheet helped me start doing these things a lot more automatically. Since making that list, training and treating my body right hasn't been the fight that it has been upon  my return from the east coast. I still get sad about my grandma. I still get brain fog in the middle of workouts. But I'm better at just doing them anyways. I'm making good food choices. I'm getting enough rest. I'm better, day by day...

It also helps to have a supportive spouse, and to see people I like. Yesterday after my big brick workout*, Mr. Scandinavian Mullet brought me a big glass of ice water in my Colorado Triathlon Champion glass. Then we had a nice dinner at our friends' house - seeing people I like really does improve the quality of your life. I'm grateful every day, even if it's hard, especially if it's hard. And so, I carry on, with my sad and grateful heart. I'll be excited again by the time my taper comes up, I'm sure!

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* Yesterday's brick was miserable. 50-mile ride, then a six-mile run with first four miles at "race intensity." We started the ride WAY too late, it was hot and the wind had picked up. Part of the trail was closed for construction and we had to detour a few miles, backtracking and then riding on gravel - not my favorite on a road bike! And of course I forgot how difficult the C-470 trail is heading east from Chatfield - by the time we crossed I-25, I was crying, I didn't want to go uphill anymore and we had to ride out to Jordan Rd! But I got it together. Drank more water, had a caffeine gel, mood greatly improved. It was a sunny day, and I was riding with my love, after all... things looked a lot better (literally, mountain views!) as we rode through Cherry Creek park. We ended up riding almost 55 miles. Then I had to run in the heat. I chose this... but I was mad. And of course I ran "race intensity" like it was a SHORT race, not like I'd be doing for my half IM! So I blew myself up on miles 1-4, and had a hard time with those last 2 miles... but, I got it done and now I know more, and it is unlikely my race will be as tough as yesterday was! That glass of ice water from Patrick was the best thing ever, for a million reasons. 

some days are diamonds...

Some days are rocks. Two weeks ago, my grandma died. Then that Saturday, four days later, I had my first tri of the season, the Colorado Triathlon (I raced the Olympic distance). I did not want to race. I did not want to figure out how to start living in a world my grandma no longer occupied, but I knew if I wanted to get to Oregon, I needed to do this race, even if it was maybe going to rain on race day. And Mr. Scandinavian Mullet was volunteering, so we couldn't have him bail on that. So we got up early, we had extra coffee, and did the best we could to get out of the house to arrive in Boulder as close to site opening as possible. 

June 3, 2023 - Colorado Triathlon in Boulder, CO
Women 45-49, Olympic distance

So, my goal for the race was to not finish last in my age group. Well... that pic, that's me in the yellow. i finished 2nd in my age group, with my first podium finish for triathlon, 20 years in to doing them! So obviously, mission accomplished. Incidentally, I almost missed participating in this Kodak moment. I knew I had caught one woman in my age group on the run and finished ahead of her. Individual race times weren't posted beyond the first 100 finishers (of both the sprint and Olympic) as I was walking out of the venue, heading back to the car. But I happened to notice they had video monitors which were scrolling through the lead finishers, so I paused to check for club friends who may have won their age group. When my age group came up, with my name next to #2, I yelled out "OH MY GOD!" and nearly blew out the eardrums of the woman next to me. I apologized and said "That's MY NAME! Next to number 2! OH MY GOD!" She started laughing at me and said "Well, you better get over there to the podium area!" So I did, but not before I borrowed her phone to text Mr. Scandinavian Mullet that I had PLACED and to come meet me at the podium. 

At the awards area, I saw some tri club friends and acquaintances. I felt very weird being there, walking my old road bike and my Trader Joe's bags full of race items, with my wetsuit hanging over my arm. Someone said hi and asked if I got an award, and it was very, very hard for me to say "I think I did... my name was next to the number two, for my age group in the Olympic." They were all so excited and congratulatory! I told them I could NOT believe this, and that I honestly thought it was a mistake. They laughed, but I was dead serious, I wasn't sure I should be there. I mean, ME???? One guy said, "I saw your husband earlier, where is he now?" I burst out laughing. "I sent him to the car! I had NO IDEA I'd place! And I don't have a phone or anything to text him, I borrowed someone else's phone a minute ago, but he's volunteering, and I have no idea where he is or if he saw my text. Is this for real?" He laughed, then he offered to be my stand-in husband and take my podium photos. [Thank you very much, David Rhodes, for capturing this moment. You can be my stand-in husband anytime!]

It turns out there were six women in my age group - coming in second out of six is top 30% and I will take it! I had a very fun race, despite being very sad about my Grandma, it was wonderful to see so many friends, have perfect cloudy and cool race weather, and have FUN swimming, biking and running like a madwoman around Boulder. (Me, having fun RUNNING, I cannot believe THAT one, either!) The whole morning was an incredibly bright spot during this very dark and somber period of my life, and capping it off with a spot on the podium was just the best kind of icing. I will never forget the shock, joy and glee I felt while standing on that black plywood box with the 2 on it, holding a glass that had "Colorado Triathlon Champion" etched onto it. All three of us up there, we were so happy. I will hold on to that memory forever. Definitely a diamond day. 

And now, we're back to the rocks. My grandma's funeral was last week, which was hard, but good. I drove the dogs out to Philadelphia, Mr. Scandinavian Mullet flew out for it, then we all drove back home together. I was so far out of a routine that week, but I wasn't stressed about it. I mean, a 3800-mile road trip, burying a beloved relative, I can certainly give myself grace for just doing the best I can to get through all that. But now that I've been home for almost a week, I haven't fully settled back into a healthy routine, and I'm getting mad at myself for that. I want to find a way to extend the grace I give myself, here. I can't expect to just snap back into life as usual. 

Specifically, I'm having a hard time taking care of ME and making healthy food and alcohol choices while I am grieving. I have been back on track with my workouts, and each day I aim for good nutrition, but as the day goes on, I get sad, and the food part is hard for me to handle well. [Honestly it is the food, I've had only two drinks since I returned home.] I know I want to feel as strong in Oregon next month as I did in Boulder two weeks ago, and how I fuel this body is a big part of that. I know that every day, I'm getting a little bit better, but... I think it's important to acknowledge that it is difficult for me not to use food as a coping mechanism. Today is the first day I really planned out all my meals, so there's a little more intention, a little more progress - evidence that I'm still mining for diamonds. 

I really am doing the best I can to get a little better each day. Whatever your goals are, I hope you're doing the same. 

 --

The woman who won my age group, Betsy Mercer, beat me by 20 minutes. I don't know her, but my coach does, and she said she's an incredible cyclist and athlete in general. Of course I wanted to know more about her, so I Googled her, and it turns out she has quite the story. Betsy blew past me on the bike, early on - obviously I didn't know it was her, but I certainly remember being passed by the blazing fast woman wearing a full-length compression sleeve on just her left leg. Very inspiring lady, and very happy to stand on a podium with her!

it's not about the goggles

Last week our tri club had an open water swim clinic at the gravel ponds at Chatfield reservoir, in Chatfield State Park. I have a race coming up and I'm scared of cold water, so I figured I'd better go and get in and prove to myself that I wasn't gonna die. That day, the universe had been conspiring against me as soon as I opened my eyes. Since no one wants to read a litany of bad news [well, maybe you do, if it isn't happening to YOU personally, BUT...] I'll just spare you the list of terrible, awful things that led to me having a terrible, awful day. And then, on the way to the res, traffic was SO BAD, I was over 30 minutes late. (Turns out there was a wreck on the highway, that driver was having a way WORSE day than me, I hope they are OK). 

Anyhow I was sure I'd miss the swim, did I really want to pay to get into the park just to run? FINE I was down there, I could see people I knew, do the run, and likely feel slightly better after a workout. So I drove up to the gate and paid the $10 and went in. 

Good news to my eyes as I pulled down to the swim area parking lot, I could see the club members standing on the shore, not in the water. Alright, Lizzie, you're goin' swimmin'. I ran up in time to catch some stellar swim tips from Mr. Fish, standing there in his Speedos while nearly everyone else was in their wetsuits. He had great insights about how to round buoys, breathing and sighting in open water and handing different swim situations during a race. 

And then we all got in the water. Oh boy. It was COLD. Me and another Floridian were joking about how we were NOT in Florida swim conditions! It definitely helped to be in the water and get acclimated to the chill factor before starting to swim. When we DID start swimming, my heart rate shot up from the cold. This was actually no joke - I was fine, but when I stopped, I certainly noticed my racing heart, and one member had some anxiety and had to be pulled from the water (they were OK). But this is why we do these things, we test and we train and we see what it's like and have our panic attacks now, so we don't panic come race day. Because the race should be fun. 

We even had a wheelchair athlete get in the water with us! Talk about inspiration. This guy had more of an athlete's build than many people standing on the shore. He looked like an IronMan champion - that night, he was the Chatfield Gravel Pond Swim Champion, for sure. 

After the swim, we did a short out-and-back run, heading off into the sunset. On the way back, I was trying to catch this woman just as a marker for myself that I could set my sights on a person and reach them. I ended up getting her on the last half-mile. She and I talked for a while afterward, turns out she is in the middle of passing a kidney stone, so the fact that she was even there doing a workout, well, she's the female athlete champion of the night. I was telling her about my grandma, she knew a lot about Hospice and it was really nice to just talk to someone out loud, and not in my own head, about the shitty and wonderful state of having a loved one going through Hospice and the end of their life. And I got to meet a woman I train with virtually, in real life and she is DELIGHTFUL and I can't wait to see her more. I really felt a million times better than I did when I got to the park. Seems one solution for turning around a bad day is to go for a swim in cold water with strangers, you'll all be friends in the end.

Other takeaways: I need more open water practice. My goggles are terrible, but hey, they're twenty years old, at least and I should probably get a new pair. Of course when I spoke that aloud to my husband, the universe decided to make me grateful for those goggles, by forcing me to do a pool swim WITHOUT THEM, later that week. I accidentally left the goggles in the arm of my wetsuit, so when I got to the pool Thursday, SURPRISE! No goggles. I did the swim workout anyhow. I do NOT recommend ever doing that again, if the pool is chemically treated. My eyes burned for a good 24 hours and I used a LOT of eye drops. Again, I didn't die, but... swimming in a chlorinated pool with no goggles is really no way to live.

I did buy myself a new pair of polarized goggles Friday. And I decided to get more open water practice by going BACK to the res on Sunday. The new goggles? I LOVE THEM. If you swim outside, get yourself a pair of polarized goggles! I feel like they give me a HUGE sighting advantage. I also ran into my new kidney stone friend, and met another woman going to Oregon 70.3, too on that Sunday swim. The radio was full of great songs about living life to the fullest, taking advantage of the good days, etc. OK, Universe, I hear you. 

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Swim links, also posted at the sidebar at left for future reference:

Chatfield Reservoir information - scroll to the bottom for swimming conditions and water temp info. 

What kind of goggles should I get? This page at yourswimlog.com is a great starting point to answer that question. 

Swim n Things - if you're in the Denver, Colorado, area, they have sample goggles you can try on to see which ones fit you best. And this is a great store for anything swim-related, both competitive and fun. 

I bought a pair of Tyr Special Ops 2.0 Polarized goggles. (Mine are a lot more colorful!)