Ironman Lake Placid Training: Day 1

Day 1 of Ironman training has come and gone and I haven’t even told you guys about it yet! Don’t be mad. I’ll recap my week for you. (That’s why you come here right?)

Backing up: 2 weekends ago, Brendan and I went to visit his family. I got a great lifting workout in on Sunday in the ol’ basement…surprisingly it was pretty successful! They have a bench, a 25lb bar, and various weights, so I worked on some favorites that I don’t do often anymore (like cleans and benching):

 

I even went back to my high school days and worked on strengthening my shins. (Put a weight in a bucket, sit on a table, put bucket handle over toes, and lift foot up and down. Viola.)

I had a really great week of workouts, and went into Tuesday feeling strong. What was Tuesday, you ask? I met my Iron Team (that’s what we’re called apparently, just working the lingo into my vocab!) for my first official Team In Training Ironman practice! We headed for a quick jaunt through a chilly Central Park. There’s about 50 participants on the team, some doing the Mont Tremblant Half Ironman in June, and others doing the Lake Placid Ironman with me in July. Because it was so cold (around 10 degrees) we got moving pretty quickly. After hearing a “mission moment” from a cancer survivor on our team who is also training (reminding us why we were out there in 10 degree weather and why we’re fundraising) we began an easy, 40 minute run through Central Park. For the majority of the run I stayed with a girl who told me about a PIE FUNDRAISER. Basically it was some kind of pie-judging competition with all sorts of different categories. And she got to be one of the judges. I MUST MAKE THIS HAPPEN. I want to be a pie taste-tester.

Once we started moving it warmed up very quickly, and I had a great run with my team and kept a great pace. FINALLY WE ARE IN TRAINING. I’ve been waiting to start training officially since I signed up for this race in July, stalking my coach and staff person (aka my coworker across the room) for the most up-to-date details and training schedule. And now here we all are in January, bundling up for our weekly nighttime runs, full of energy.

And now I have my training schedule. I know what’s up ahead. (Hint: A LOT.) Still, not once did I ask myself why I was there in Columbus Circle on a 10 degree night. Why I opted for the cold park instead of my warm bed. I plan to embrace this whole cycle for everyone who can’t; everyone who is fighting a much harder battle than I will. I want to be an Ironman, and I want to be a top fundraiser for LLS. I want to make a difference in my life and the lives of others, and this is the beginning. It’s so wonderfully exciting and nerve-wracking.

In the words of the speaker at an “inspiration dinner” for Team In Training that I went to in Miami (more on this later!), if you ever get scared, just stop, be silent, and focus on the beating of your heart.

“Bum bum. Bum bum. Bum bum. ‘Cause God, it’s great to be alive.”