Living on the edge.

You know you are fatigued when:
1: You can't remember your own name or what day it is. (ok...this is a bit dramatic and an attempt to grab one's attention, but it is at least partially true! ;-))
2: You put the peanut butter in the fridge and the mayo in the cabinet...and YES I was eating them at the same time!! :-O
3: You show your sister the shirt and sweater you bought....forgetting that she was shopping with you and HELPED you chose that combination.
4: You wake up after sleeping 8 hours and could easily sleep another 8.
5: Your heart rate climbs to 150 just walking up the stairs.
6: Your shoulders and lungs scream after one minute of holding a towel over your head while running to your car in the pouring rain after guppy class. No way would you remember to bring your umbrella!!

These recent occurrences are true and accurate...except perhaps for number one...and are the result of a very well-lived weekend. It started with a long swim set in the pool on Friday morning. I felt like crap the entire time and 4200 meters took FOREVER! I worked for a few hours after that, then went to see Gregory, my deep tissue massage guru. I usually schedule his torture session the day before a recovery day, since it takes me about two days to recover from his muscle, tendon, and ligament manipulations. My goal during those sessions is to not outwardly sob! He is fabulous!! Since this session was scheduled the day before the 112 mile ride, I asked him to go easy on me. Bless his heart, he really tried. I only teared up and sniffled once! ;-)
I got to the Monona Terrace at 6:30 am the next morning. My very good friend Brian, who is not a triathlete but a really good cyclist, agreed to ride the entire 112 with me at my pace, which of course is quite a bit slower than his own. We would be starting out with the team and riding with them for however long it took for everyone to go their own speed. We knew there were storms coming, and sure enough, by 7 am they hit. Looking at the radar on everyone's smart phone, (I really need to get out of the stone age and get me one of those!! :-O), it was looking like we had at least one to two hours before it all cleared out. I got a little stressed out, and I had a decision to make. My sis and I had a train to catch out of Milwaukee at 7:40 that night. I was calculating in my head how much time this ride was going to take, and depending on when we started, when I would be finished. I was out of time. I considered doing it another day, but there really was no other day that worked. How horrible would it be if I cut the ride short? Physically, probably not the end of the world. Mentally...horrible.
I called my sweet sister and we decided to forgo the train, take a hit on the already purchased tickets, and just drive to Chicago. WHEW!
For the most part the ride went well! The weather was PERFECT after the storms came through. It took a while to get into a rhythm as I had to keep stopping to pee...thanks to Blake and his surprise gift of Starbucks coffee for everyone waiting to ride, aka "heaven in a cup", and the little issue with my hubby trying to ride a loop of the course for the first time. That is a story for another day. I am very happy to say...he didn't die, we only lost him once, and I am positive he will never celebrate his birthday in that way ever again! :-)
The last 40 miles were the best. We got into a steady rhythm and it felt great! The second half of that ride was faster than the first, and I was very happy. Brian was amazing! He was cramping up during the last 10 miles and I felt so bad for him. He didn't complain, he just kept pushing. At one point he did say, "I cannot imagine running 26 miles after this. That is F*#@ing crazy!!!" I told him I could imagine it, but was very happy to NOT be doing it on that day. :-) The 15 minute run after, however, felt pretty damned good...YEAH!
The 2+ hour car ride to Chicago did not feel so good, but I wore my pink compression socks with my bright blue Boston Marathon sandals, so I LOOKED good anyway. Everyone at the hotel must have thought so and I caught more than a few people staring! ;-)
The next morning I ran two hours on the Lake Shore path and around the park. Again, the weather was perfect, and it goes without saying that the surroundings were really cool! The first hour of the run felt terrible, but the next hour felt better. Yet another promising sign that the hard work is paying off!
In retrospect, the physical activities that were involved with Sunday night's Incubus concert was probably not the best recovery plan. Our tickets were general admission so we could get as close as possible to the band. I obviously did not think this through. The music of Incubus, while pretty alternative in the beginning years, has really evolved into something a bit more mellow. As we were standing in the crowd before the concert started, I realized that this was going to get interesting. I was very surprised at how young everyone was. I saw very few people my age, and most were in their teens and 20's. Hmmmm....should we move from where we were standing, which was right up near the front and in the center...the perfect place for the moshing? Do people even do that anymore? I've been to concerts that have had a mosh pit, but it had been years and we always either had seats or stayed to the side.
We stayed where we were. The music started and all was good for awhile. Then the band did certain songs that created, shall we say, some energy in the crowd, and we started to get pushed and shoved. I was worried about my sis and her bad back, so I had her stand in front of me while I pushed all the half-naked, stoned fans, (did I mention the cloud of pot that was EVERYWHERE??), off of us. I got stubborn and cocky. "I am and Ironman for crying out loud! Doesn't matter that I'm older than some of your Mothers and more than a little tired from that little bit of riding and running I did! This is good training for the IM swim start! I CAN keep you off of us and ENJOY the music at the same time!!" Reality is a B*@&h! It just got too crazy, and in one brief moment a little scary. A really cool guy helped us out of there and we moved off to the side. We didn't have to move very far, and the moshing quit after awhile. All that being said, the concert was amazing! We had a great time and met a few very nice kids...some who were younger than my own. SIGH!
Tuesday tired came roaring in on Monday, as anticipated. Today is Wednesday and it is still there. I feel like my body is trying to fight off a virus, but today I'm at least feeling better than yesterday. I think I will win this fight! After a much needed day off from training on Monday, the workouts continue. Tonight I have another date with "the hill" during the team ride. That should feel...well...we'll see! ;-)
I was reminded this morning while reading Sasha's status on FB...18 more days. It's taper time!!!
Enjoy this day!