Rainbows and Butterflies

 I wrote a long blog and deleted it..... My intent is not to be offensive but to be realistic and vent a bit.  Life is not and cannot be Rainbows and Butterflies. I am frustrated with people wanting (and expecting) everything delivered in a nice package with bow on it.   Now this is ironic as I am constantly lovingly giving my husband grief for his Rhode Island/Engineering/Braman syntax, which is NOT rainbows and butterflies but rapid fire information (at times)  So for me, who is quite sensitive believe it or not, to be bothered it takes a lot.  

In general most people have good intentions, other then on Slowtwitch and a few people I have blocked on FB, so when someone gives you feedback or information take it for what it is knowing they are sharing with you out of good intentions and not likely shouting at you personally... as in NO SHOUTIE CAPS.  The amount of time and energy it takes to make sure "no one's feelings are hurt" takes away from day to day productivity. 

If someone does offend you ,call them on it.  Here is where boys are more successful than girls....  It seems most men can tell another guy, "hey that pissed me off" and they are done with it whereas women calls 3 other women to tell them that so and so said something that they interpreted to be offensive and do they agree?  Okay maybe an exaggeration but you get the point. It can be exhausting.... 

Put on your big girl pants, "lean in" and join the conversation.   It does not always need to be a village! Speak up, say your part and live life. 

Go Big Rock or Go Home!

To be healthy and racing is so damn exiting.  I had so much "fun" at Oceanside I was itching to race again before St George 70.3 in 3 weeks.  A few teammates are heading to Perris (note the E and 2x R) which is 75 min from here inland and North for the Big Rock Triathlon!  Cleared with Coach and I signed up.

The plan was train as usual and race and resume training.  So I did hill repeats and a killer trainer session on Tue, hit the gym twice, backed it up with a solid run, 3 good swims and climbed Palomar on Thursday.  Showed up race morning tired but with a happy face.

Racing is 10x more fun with team mates and friends so I was happy to hang with Heidi and Liz.  Good to see a few other familiar faces as well. This race was polar opposite to Oceanside as in maybe 100 people total for the Olympic, Spring and Mountain Bike. Super chill and relaxed.  Smalll and no pressure.

Swim was SHORT, really. Race stated 1500 meter swim, but turns out it was 1150 yards- oops.  There goes my advantage.  Race had 3 waves (vs Oceanside 21 )   Wave 1: Olympic Wave - all of us coed  2: Sprint Wave 3: Mountain Bike.   We took off 11 minutes late but  AFTER a guy shouldered in front of my just before the start and he says "do you mind?"  I say " as a matter of fact I do?"  He looks at me and I look back.  He says okay what's your swim time?  I say  "for this course?"  He says" no Ironman, cause I swim a 56"  "Great" I say and shoulder back in front of him and say " I swam a 51 at IMLT"  Guy next to me says "word" and the race starts.....

2 loops done 12 min XX seconds- gee think it was short.  As I am running up the beach on the .4 mile transition (not kidding) a girl behind me is yelling "hey the Olympic course is 2 loops"  I say "yes I know"  She says "but you only did one loop"  I say "no I did 2" She says (by the way we are running up hill in soft sand, my HR is about 195 after redlining a swim) "are you sure"  At this point I politely or not so politely say "mind your own f'ing business" She does not and says " I hope you did" I even less politely say "my last name is Dunkle- look it up"  Jesus....this is the 2nd time I have been accused of cutting the swim. Really people it's the run you ought to worry about...

On the bike, no power, OK ride by feel. 3 loops and it is hilly and has some major wind. Fun times.... my goal was keep HR as high as I could, stay aero,  keep each loop the same speed and rip the down hills and repeat and repeat.

Onto the run.  So my biggest competition was Polly and she is a killer runner.  Welcome to my life.  So not knowing how far back she was it was hard to know what might happen.  She could easily run 1 min per mile faster, so I needed 6 minutes on her.  2 loop run course so at 1.5 miles I knew I would see her.... After the turn around I looked at my watch to see how far back she was.  Looked like she was over a mile back but I was running well and just held on.  The advertised course was flat and fast where as it was rolling and curvy.  Sharp turns and undulations but I held her off!  My run split was right up there thus it was a success!

I am just so happy to be racing ! More good lessons.... show up tired and just go. Think less and have fun!   2016 is off to a good start.   BTW Olympic are all about pain....start to finish.  

More complaining....if you dont want to read about Poison Oak skip this blog

Believe me I too wish Poison Oak was still not prevalent enough to blog about!   So here we are 10 days past the initial PO breakout. So far I have:

AND NONE OF THEM WORK!!

• 2 Steroid shots ($35 co pay- nicely waived it the 2nd time)
• Zanfel x 2 ( $82.00)
• Zantec ($18) (aka the roofie- non drowsy my arse- 30 min and I am out cold for 15 min- just ask the guys at the audi dealership) 
• Dombero Powder ($8)
• Benadryl ($7)
• $40 random other shit that anyone mentioned may work... oh yes, sassafras tea, Jim Humbles Miracle Mineral Solution - newsflash there was no miracle.  Infusion of nettle and horsetail tea- I am serious.  Don't judge until you up from 2-4am itching away and reading on google. The rest I refuse to publish. 

And I am still itching.... so bottom like, it is systemic in my body,  What the F does that mean? 

Systemic poison oak is an extreme allergic reaction to the urushiol oil found in a poison ivy plant. Unlike a typical reaction to poison oak, which causes a localized rash to appear on the skin where contact took place, a systemic reaction is one that is not isolated to one area. These rashes may spread all over the body, including to areas that had no direct contact with the plant. This condition can be life-threatening, but there are treatments available.  ok so not life threatening but really, really annoying! 

No wonder I am freaking dying  really itchy, still after 10 days.  Is is getting better, yes it is, is it gone NO. How much longer... likely another 10 days.  So until then the bedtime routine some weird voodoo shit , wine and benadryl. I know bad combination but well - don't judge! But funny when I type in googe benadryl and wine it auto fills "is this dangerous", "side effects" So clearly I am NOT the first. 

Oh and BTW I am heading up to Perris- not the E and 2x R- as in Perris off the I15 and not in Europe for an Olympic Distance Race. Rolling out of here at 4:30- not a problem the drugs wear off around 3 so I am awake.   Racing Oceanside with a Sinus Infection worked out ok so let's try a shorter race with PO.  I tapered all week with hill repeats on Tue, killer trainer session and then a cruisy ride yesterday up Mt Palomar.  So tired legs- yes.  My biggest issue is I cannot take an antihistamine or I will fall asleep and crash driving there or could fall asleep in transition. So maybe I take on post race, take a nap and drive home... will see how that works out. 

Reason 107 why NOT to leg your dog in your bed

As if you need more than a few reasons.....don't get fooled by oh they are so cuddly and sweet...In reality they

- go out it middle of the night to pee and come back in with muddy wet paws (frequently)
- go out in the middle of the night and dig up a week old rawhide and bring back to bed (once a month)
- snore like a drunken sailor
- push your spouse the one who wanted the dog in the bed out of the bed and into the guest room
- roll over with all the covers and leave you with a corner of the sheet

BUT the creme de la creme is when your dog frolics in poison oak without telling you and dives in the bed and rolls around a few times and falls asleep with her poison oakey head on the pillow.  (this is all a presumption I must say)

And you fall into bed, sick with sinus infection banged up from racing and fall asleep.

Tuesday night at the theater (yes I go to the theater every 5 years) My right eye and cheek began to itch and soon my left arm.  Maybe something I ate....although we ate at Cafe Gratitude- vegan organic place.  Went to bed a bit worried and woke up in the dark, with the dog snoring, and I was raking my skin.

Poison Oak feels like 1000's of red ants marching on your skin and taking tiny bites.  Seriously.  I stumbled in the bathroom and could literally see it creeping out.  2 benadryl and an antihistamine and I went to sleep or into a drug coma and woke up looking horrific. Swollen eye and red agry rash on face, left arm, chest, right forearm, right thigh, few patches on my back, left shin, nect....   With my history I knew I needed a Dr.

By 4pm I was crawling out of my skin.  Giant shot of steroids and some drugs for my sinus's.  I was armed for a good night.  Not so much by 11pm I was scratching ....so much so that I remembered the magic pills that finally helped Zen with his itchy scratchy skin.   Dosage said 3 per day, he was 70 lbs, okay I'll take 4 to error on the safe side.  Seemed rational at 11pm.... Luckily the pills are a human drug and I was itch free for a few hours.

So here we are on Friday and it is NOT gone.  I have more drugs, have used  Zanfel , which helped tremendously. But I warn you it is $42 a tube, so expensive they have it in the glass case. But if you are itching like I am you would pay $500 and punch a person if they took the last tube.     Seems Poison Oak loves me so much it is now systemic, in my blood, so it can come out again  Seriously.  I have been to this rodeo.... it will pass but really ?

The Dr says..."if  you thoroughly wash with a washcloth or exfoliating scrub when you get in the PO you can avoid this"  NO kidding genius but I DID not know I was crawling into a poison oak nest.

I will also say that it seems 1/2 bottle of wine also helps..... I know, I know.... come Monday it will be all right (that is a song you know) But really next week- back in training mode- Pelligrino it is but for now.... William Hill Chardonnay + antihistamine + Zen's pills.   Go ahead judge.....

PS no pictures....  becase they are grosser than my blister and rub spot in my last post.

Oceanside 70.3..... the ideal lead up

Not so much....

Here is how the lead up and day went down for my 7th Oceanside 70.3.

Wed:

- woke up with a noticeably stuffy nose that progressed to sinus pain by end of the day.  Ugh
- shake out run was slow and legs heavy- ignore this

Thur:
- sinuses impacted and sore throat.  Dust off the neti-pot
- OW swim with Erica (best homestay ever) and few pro's and fellow races.
- Water temp was good- cool and comfortable and sinuses drained in the Cove - feeling optimistic

Friday
- woke up ignoring how I was feeling and promptly took daytime cold drugs and fooled myself into thinking I am "much better". That was until I took a nap and woke up with a low grade fever.  ignore
- this was the first time I realized racing may not be possible, but nevertheless, I racked my bike and acted like I was fine
- pre race dinner- courtesy of  Foodsense Now - roasted sweet potatoes, black beans, corn and chicken.  Perfect balance and tasted great.  Small amount of dark chocolate
- The Right Stuff before bed

Saturday
- up 3:30am- no fever but not feeling stellar (ignore).   Decided to take daytime cold meds to dry up my nose  - WADA approved drug. Issue with a decongestant is that it dries up everything else.  dry mouth etc
- 3x pancakes + coffee and almond milk + The Right Stuff for breakfast- 600 calories

- out the door early as Erica was starting 55 minutes before me.  I had some time to chill in my car before heading to the race and I decided to not overthink it.  Just see how the day unfolded.  If I was feeling really sick and felt like continuing would make me sicker, I may drop.  And if my foot gave me issues, I would drop as this is not my A race and I did not want to risk injury.
- in Transition getting ready and soaking up the race energy, connecting with my athletes racing as well as so many friends  and team mates.  The best part of racing.

- As they were closing transition I realized my timing chip was at home...panic run and nearly knocked over Heather Fuhr freaking out - no worries, chip on and as I am walking back I hear last chance for body marking.  Holy crap I forgot to get marked.  This was starting to feel like my first rodeo.
- Lined up and waiting in the cattle call and finally in the water.  Swim out to the start line, adjust my goggles and the strap unravels.  And my goggles are under my cap. So with 1 min to go, treading water I take off my cap and rethread the goggles, back on my head and cap on and gun goes off.

Swim  28:41 (2:10 slower than best swim at O'side)
2 min slow based on my PE and fitness.  Water was choppy and I did not see the tangent right and lost time treading water asking where the heck to go. As usual the swim was crowded. I felt good swimming, loose and not compromised.

Bike: 2:44:12 (4 min slower than best bike)
I forgot to put my aero jersey on before the swim (clearly my brain was not working)  so I tried to wrestle it on and ditched it.  Legs felt good on the bike- followed power guidelines and know I was going to be okay as the last 10 miles I was feeling strong.

Nutrition- possibly have finally figured this out
water up front
concentrated bottle with carbo pro and carb rocket and every 30 min I took a sip that was 125 calories. I draw lines on the bottle so I know I am drinking the right amount
6 total salt tabl-  3 at 1 hour and 3 at 2 hours.  Took in less salt as I preloaded with The Right Stuff
- 700 total calories

Run 1:50:47 (7 min off best run)
Here we go.  First few miles I held back and ran as planned.  the plan was run in control first lap, knowing that my biggest competitor is a runner and I may need all I have a the end. Going into the race, doing the math I figured if I ran a 1:5-54 which is all I can expect based on my compromised run fitness -  I am about a month shy of being race ready - it would be a close race.

First split I got by clocking the turn around she was about 7 min back- which did not tell me a lot as I did not know where she was coming off the bike.  So I kept the pace.  Around mile 5 my breathing became compromised and I could feel the cold settling in. My pace was getting slower and I was not feeling so great.  Legs seemed okay but my chest, nose etc were not feeling good.  Took it 1 mile at a time and soaked up the crowds where I could and got to the turn around.  Here is where I had to talk with myself as I was not feeling well and not sure what would happen.  In fact I wanted to lay down and take a nap.

best part of being on a team is racing with fellow teammates! 

This is where I decided to race, stay in the game and suffer.  The last 6 miles were tough, tunnel vision and taking them 1 at a time.   Leslie was the only person I could focus on and around mile 10 I was cramping and thinking no way.  I took a vial of  It's the Nerve, nearly puked and took off.  I could  see she was about 2 min + back.  If she was running 45-1 min faster per mile I was going to get beat.  Not happening, so I dug in, picked up the pace and just ran.

It worked but holy hell it was painful  -  Having just finished the book How Bad Do  You Want It- I had a few good mantras in my toolkit to focus on.

It was a good day... slow day. Instead of focusing on how slow my run was I am focusing on the ability to race and suffer!

Next up St George-  I am sooo excited!  4 weeks of training and being healthy could be really fun.

Moral of this race is you just never know- don't over think it.  Compare this lead up to IM Lake Tahoe where everything was nearly perfect; great workouts, healthy and so confident and wham a totally bust of a race.

So I take from this race....
-  don't waste energy on what is not going right
- go for it, dig deep and suffer

Thank you Mike Ricci for sticking with me after last years cluster of a season and a rough fall.  And Leslie for the intel and knowing how to talk to me when racing.

can you say chafe? 

And for the reminder of what can happen to our bodies race day...suck it up and ignore

the hoka blister I get every race

And a special thanks to Groove Tri and Nytro Multisport- Without the awesome support at Nytro getting race ready would be a challenge!