Looking back at 2011

Thinking back over 2011, it was a year of change for me... moving, marriage, job; a complete life change that has made me the happier than ever.  (Well, maybe not ship my race wheels with UPS to Kona, HI.)

Top 5 Experiences for 2011
1. Marrying my best friend, the greatest day of my life.

2. Spending month in Kona including a fabulous honeymoon on the Big Island after a race that had a mechanical issues but there is no finish line like running down Alii and sharing the experience with family and friends.

3. Surprise visit to see my mom while she was on vacation in Charleston.  This vacation was the last time she felt normal in 2011 after dealing with shingles then falling breaking her shoulder; I appreciate the moments I get to spend with my family.  Okay, this picture is not from this time in Charleston but from getting ready for the wedding.

4. Running Louisville Marathon with friends, Shelby and Sarah.  Sharing a race experience with friends can not be beat; what an awesome experience.  Can not believe I have no pictures from the fun filled weekend!

5. Biking in the North GA mountains.  I am blessed to have the mountains so close to enjoy with friends.  One of the first rides I ever did with Kris was here; he had patience to practically have to walk his bike up each of the gaps.  Now this year, I managed to drop him a few times this year climbing; okay he was injured but I have to take the victories from him when I can!!



Top Lessons Learned
1. True family and friends will support you on your decisions; if they do not it is their issue to work through not yours.
2. Never give up.  Such a cliche and easy to say until you are faced with adversity and want to stop.
3. Hard to follow own advice.  Advice that I have give many times, I did not follow myself. 
4. Late nights are not good for my health.  My circadian rhythm gets thrown off ...I get ill.  Each time I have been sick over the past few years I can usually track it back to requiring working through the night.

Now that chapter 2011 is closed; it will be remembered as a year with some of the most memorable moments of my life and a few I would rather forget.  Thanks to everyone who played a role!

Training again...Ouch

It has been a little over week since I started "training" after 2 weeks spent mostly horizontal in bed.  My number one concern was the infection coming back plus avoiding overuse injuries developing from trying to come back too quickly.  Before getting sick my training was developing a solid base for 2012.  Welll....being off for that length of time and asthmatic, I wanted to be smart at this point in the season to see how my body was reacting to the training with my power, pace and heart rate to get back where we left off.

Becca - 2010 Post North Georgia Gaps Ride & Run

 I started with easy spinning for about 30 minutes and felt like I had just ridden 100 miles in the North Georgia mountains and a brick run I did in 2010.  My easy spinning power caused my HR to go into zone 3.  YIKES!  So it became a soft pedal day.  Over the next 3 days I gradually increase my bike time and my heart rate and power zones started to correlate.  Walking and yoga were added to the routine. 

After a few easy days on the bike & walking I was finally ready to start EASY running which I did a few 20-30 minute before beginning to even considering having my heart rate in my upper zone 1.  At first, I know that my tights had weigts stuffed in them; but they eventually fell out! 

Last swimming, I waited a little longer on swimming because of 2 reasons, 1st my shoulder had an incident at the beginning of November during a mountain biking weekend and 2nd is I dread getting in a cold pool & struggle regulating my body temperature.  Luckily, swimming easy was okay.  Now holding any interval was not going to happen for a few days but 3K was pretty easy on my first day back to the pool.  Positive!!! 

After about 9 days my power levels, pace & heart race started to come back in line and I am feeling ready & excited to begin serous training again. (Of course it does not hurt to realize that Ironman TX is in 5 months)  Coincidence to see an article today on active and I am thankful for my coach (Kathleen) instilling in me when you have systemic symptoms to not workout.  (Scare Tactics to Prevent You From Exercising While Sick). 

Next goal... staying healthy! I have good start with my daily green smoothie!  YUM!