IRONMAN CDA- JUNE 24, 2012

What is Ironman Coeur D' Alene ??? 

(pronounced core da lane)

http://ironmancda.com/

2.4 MILE SWIM- 112 MILE BIKE- 26.2 MILE RUN

The Ironman Coeur d' Alene event is a triathlon starting at 7:00am in the morning. -Guns go off at 7am- most participants arrive by 5:00am to get everything ready- body marked, making sure bikes are ok and ready to go, transition bags are ready to go, a few trips to the bathroom, and wrestling with your wetsuit to get it on perfectly so that you're in the perfect position on the beach when the gun goes off

(All 2600 participants start at the same time, male and female- the pro athletes start prior to the age group athletes) 

All participants need to swim 2.4miles in an open body of water and need to finish the swim by 9:20am (swim 2.4 in 2hrs 20min) You then enter what's called Transition 1 where you get ready to ride your bike. You need to leave this area by 9:35am.  Participants need to make the first 56mile loop cut off by 1:30pm, the 90mile cut off by 4:00pm and the 112mile cut off by 5:30pm. Participants then enter transition 2 where they get ready to run 26.2 miles. Participants need to make the first 13miles by 9pm then the 20.5 mile cut off at the top of Bennet Hill at 10:30pm and need to cross the finish line by 12:00am in order to be able to call themselves an IRONMAN. 

  

Lake Coeur D' Alene is in the beautiful Northwest Region of the country not far from Spokane Washington, or Missoula Montana in the NW part of Idaho (not too far from Canada either if that helps you picture it on the map), Actually, here is a map :)

https://maps.google.com/maps?aq=f&q=where+is+lake+coeur+d'+alene&ie=UTF-8&hl=en

You haven't seen this video yet, this also explains what an Ironman is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B03dFMG8nR4

 Why IRONMAN?? 

What got you started??
(I signed up for Ironman CDA because it looked pretty- this was before IM Wisconsin 2011 when I didn't make the swim cut off- when I didn't make the cutoff I signed up for IM Wisconsin 2012- putting me at a goal of completing 2 Ironmans for 2012- Oops? or Yay? I'm going with YAY!)

So you don't normally decide you're going to just jump into an Ironman (unless you're a pro). You normally need to sign up about a year in advance as events tend to sell out. (These events are NOT cheap to sign up for either) You then typically take several months of training and preparing your body to be able to complete each event by the cutoff times. Not one of my typical impulsive decisions.... something that started as a little whisper..... 

So how I got into it....

I studied at the lovely University of Wisconsin-Madison and lived in the Lakeshore dorms. A perfect spot for the occasional run. I ran for fun, to enjoy the day, to feel good. Madison every year has this wonderful 10K event called the Crazylegs Classic ending in Camp Randall with free beer. It was my first experience with organized endurance events and I loved it, the energy, the fun... the free beer :) My sis and I would run it every year, come on, free beer! Why wouldn't you want to?

Back in Chicago after college, our first (I say our, because several of my early running experiences were with Jenn my twin) Chicago race was the 5K Shamrock Shuffle. We got a year where it wasn't crazy crowded, or terrible weather. It was sunny, energetic, and again free beer with a concert at the finish line- FUN!

We kept running locally in Chicago and then came across the Soldier Field 10 mile classic- 10 miles was the furthest I've ever ran, but you got to finish in Soldier Field! with... beer! (see a pattern? :) ) This event quickly became my favorite race. 

It was Memorial Day weekend of 2007. Jenn and I were running the Soldier Field 10 (she has always been faster than me so she was just ahead of me). A few weeks earlier we had learned that our father had been diagnosed with esophageal cancer. A lot was happening, very quickly, without much time to process anything. It was at the finish line in Soldier Field where Jenn saw a tent advertising running the Chicago Marathon as a member of the American Cancer Society Charity Runner Team. She signed up. Damn it. If she was running a marathon, I would have to too!! It took a few days for me to decide, but I ended up waiting too long, the ACS didn't have slots left. But now I was stuck on the idea of running the marathon so I got a slot through Team World Vision. They are a wonderful organization and I was proud to run with them. But the American Cancer Society DetermiNation program (then the Charity Runner program) quickly became very special to us. 

As summer training went by, our father's health fluctuated from better to quickly worse. At this time our Aunt Silvia had also been battling breast cancer, after being in remission for 10 years, cancer came back and she had spent several months quite sick. 

In October of 2007 Jenn and I crossed the finish line of our first marathon. Dad was cheering from above, having passed a few weeks prior to the race. Our aunt silvia was right there next to him with a pom pom as she also passed a few weeks after him, and just a week before the race. It was a terribly difficult time for our Uncle, who lost his brother and wife within a few weeks of each other, but he was right there on that marathon course, cheering us on as we finished our first marathon. (Our uncle actually ran Mayor Dayley's FIRST Chicago marathon and was a Boston qualifier)

The American Cancer Society Charity Runner program was a positive part of a difficult time in our lives. I was surrounded by an amazing community of inspiring individuals. The next year in 2008 Jenn and I decided to stay involved. We continued to race (and still participate) and we call ourselves "Team Familia" see the blog for more details. We joined the committee to help inspire others to participate in endurance events and participate with the ACS DetermiNation team http://determination.acsevents.org/

It was in a committee meeting, where my fellow teammates sat in their recently earned Ironman Wisconsin finisher's swag. Then, I didn't really understand what an Ironman was, but I thought "damn, that's cool..... but I could never do that......" One of the girls, Kristin McQueen- a bit of an ACS celebrity and an inspiration to all, had just completed her first- she has since completed several more- but she is living with cancer and kicking it's ass. She has had several brain surgeries and has had to live and train through the side effects including visual impairments, vertigo and other set backs. Check out her story: http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/DetermiNation/DNFY11IL?px=4563140&pg=personal&fr_id=42914. But she proudly calls herself an Ironman and tells cancer to '"SUCK IT".   

I signed up for my first sprint triathlon that year and thought, ok, I better learn how to swim.

After college I had taken classes at the YMCA where an enthusiastic 16 year old taught me to put my head in the water without holding my nose, taught me to float (kind of) and taught me to more or less make it down from one end of the pool to the other on my back. It was what I had to work with.

I found Max Multisport Coaching. They offered a woman's group workout package. I thought this could be a good start. That first day I couldn't swim the length of the pool. The coach had me kicking on my back the whole time. I was discouraged but wanted to get better.

They opened their arms to me and modified my workouts. My first several months were all drills, but slowly I was starting to move.

Since my start in 2008, I have had a tremendous amount of wonderful experiences and been able to participate with wonderful groups. 

MaxMultisport Coaching- is where I started- http://www.maxmultisport.com/

Chicago Endurance Sports- saw me through my first sprint Chicago Tri, My first Olympic Chicago Tri and my first 70.3 Ironman Racine :)- http://www.chicagoendurancesports.com/

Chicago Tri Club led me to Chicago Blue Dolphins were I recently joined and am already improving.
Vision Quest Coaching where I have spent the majority of my "free" time running, swimming and cycling this last year with amazing teammates. - http://www.visionquestcoaching.com/

VQ and Coach Kris got me to that start happy, healthy and confident, and all the months that went into the preparation got me through the finish line.


So that brings us to June 24, 2012. Race morning.
I had been fairly optimistic all week. Flying out over memorial day to give myself a course preview had helped tremendously to calm nerves, visualize in the last few weeks, and appreciate the beauty of the location.
I had a terrible 5K swim in Diamond Lake at the beginning of the month that was leaving me doubtful, but my swim at Wildflower had me hopeful. I had been preparing for the cold temperatures, using all the tricks my coaches taught me, so was pumped when they announced the temperature was 59! 
I gave last minute high fives and hugs to friends and start to position myself on the beach. I saw John and gave him a final slap on the ass and a high five to remind myself that this is supposed to be fun. 
I stood on that beach and just took a deep breath. This was different from Wisconsin. I felt confident and I knew that I just needed to think about swimming and according to Marcia "swim as fast as I can for as long as I can" and I wouldn't have a repeat of coming in too late.
I said a quick prayer to God, feeling overwhelming grateful. I was grateful to be standing on that beach healthy and happy. Grateful for all of the experiences that I have had these last few months and for all of the positive energy that I was feeling from friends and family far away. While I didn't have anybody on the course specifically there for me cheering me on, I felt a HUGE amount of positive energy surrounding me- so thanks everybody for the thoughts and prayers!
The gun awkwardly went off, no count down, just GO. Here we go. I wasn't shocked by the water temperature and the other swimmers weren't as bad as I thought-I was moving. The first 900m or so I tried to follow toes to draft but realized the toes I was following was leading me off course- I cursed myself and focused back on going for buoy for buoy, still catching the draft of the other swimmers. As I get out of the water and round the beach for the first loop, I looked down at my watch and saw about 1:00:00- had gone by. DAMN IT-10 min behind my goal. Just keep swimming. I kept going and found myself with fewer and fewer swimmers surrounding me..... this felt familiar. Then the waves started to pick up. Going into the wind resulted in lots of swallowed water as I tried to get a rhythm for sighting and breathing. As I turn the second red buoy for the straight away, I needed to lick my goggles again to get my barrings. I glanced down at the watch- 1:42:00--SHIT!- Gotta pick it up.. I was annoyed that I had to stop- but truly didn't know where I was. I caught the line of orange buoys and stayed with them on my left as best I could. I did a decent job sighting and stayed on course well enough. Keeping buoys on my left on kayakers on my right. Each buoy was getting closer and closer.... As I started to see the finish I could see volunteers in the water clapping and cheering. Oh no, just like Wisconsin, am I seconds away? Were they cheering because I didn't make the cut off? Were they clapping at my efforts?? Dread started to fill my stomach and I swam in pulling as hard as I could and trying to stay as straight as possible, giving it everything I had. I almost swam straight into a volunteer as she helps me up shouting YOU MADE IT!!!!....... I MADE IT!!!!! 2:13:39! I stumble out of the cold water with the help of the volunteers- everybody clapping- I start cheering and clapping and hug the first person I see. I MADE IT!!! OK... now THINK, now what do I do next? I was ushered over to get my suit stripped and off to collect my gear bag and into the changing tent just like I practiced in my head... kind of... go go go, vamos Vero.. go...
I remember the Gym Class Heroes song, "The Fighter" playing- check it out, it'll get you pumped for the 2012 Olympic games. as I was entering the changing tent.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxV-OOIamyk


Still pretty cold, the nicest grandma volunteer I've ever met in my life helped me take my bathing suit off and put by ACS shorts, VQ top and arm warmers on. I even threw on my cow socks- (THANKS ELISA FOR THE TIP OF WEARING THE SUIT- She said if I was going to change anyways, I should just wear a suit- MUCH easier) I get myself together and force myself to take a bite of banana. I swallowed a ton of lake water and was pretty close to barfing. I didn't, but didn't want to take too much food in. 
As I was leaving the tent Kelly Clarksons, "What doesn't kill you" started playing and I tried not to burst into tears as this had been one of my favorite pump you up songs these last few weeks. (crying too soon wastes energy!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avYxiIRG4xQ
"....You didn't think that I'd come back.... (Ironman) I'd come back swinging... you tried to break me, but you see  ...... What doesn't kill you makes you stronger... stand a little taller....
Yes corny, cheesy and dramatic, I know, but I don't care!!!! Try to listen to this song and not get pumped up, I dare you. 

As I was leaving the changing tent I hear "It's Veronica!" John's Aunt Tricie who I had only met a few days before, was volunteering in bike transition and was jumping up and down- I jumped into her arms to give her a hug as we cheered that I made it out of the water.


A volunteer pulled out my bike and off I went. This then quickly became the day of "cut offs" I had made the swim cut off- didn't know there was a T1 cut off, but barely made that.
Got settled on the bike and still felt sick- waiting about an hour and started my nutrition plan every 20min instead of 15 (I'm glad I backed off because I could have seriously messed up my stomach)
The day was beautiful and I was still feeling the positive race energy that was being sent out into the universe from my family and friends. I tried to settle into the first 5miles, my computer was knocked loose after 0.5 mile into it so had to constantly look at my Garmin, but was easily doing 17mph without working too hard... I got to see Dan and Elisa in town which was fun and then that reminded me to keep my cadence up and pressure on the pedals consistent. Then I come up on highway 95..... I knew this was coming from the race preview I had done over Memorial Day weekend, but for some reason this seemed hillier and with more wind than I remember. I knew there would be wind and hills going south on 95, and easier on the way back. I made the first loop in time for the cut off. I stopped at special needs, praising God that I hadn't gotten a flat, and that so far the weather was excellent, no rain or no extreme heat, and it truly was a beautiful course. I grabbed my second bottle of nutrition, only going through about 1/3 of the first, thought I would try a new one. Roll down my sleeves and get going. I started to feel better and could take nutrition every 15. This is when I tried to remember when the next cut off was. To my panic, it was the 90mile marker at the end of the hilly, windy 95. I knew that I could make the 112 cut off- but I'd have to stay on it to make the 4:00pm 90 mile cut off time. I got in with about 8min to spare- PHEW. I turned around, and enjoyed the nicer tailwind and downhills from there. 
I know that when swimming, I think about swimming (which I did) when biking, think about biking, etc, etc but I couldn't help but start conversation with a man as we approach a hill- we were at a good pace, but still able to chat- He had 62 written on his calf. As I pass him, I told him I didn't want to get emotional on him but 62 was the age of my father when he passed from esophageal cancer, I wanted to tell him that his family is fortunate that he was taking such good care of himself and he was awesome. He shared a bit of his life with me and shared that he too had cancer but had beat it, that everyday is a blessing with his grandkids he feeds them spinach to keep them healthy (granted this conversation was about 45 seconds long before we lost each other on a down, but enough to share a piece of somebody's life)
100 hits and I was just trying to stay focused on biking, not thinking too much about the run- I happily get into 112 with a big sigh of relief. No mechanical issues. I would have been toast. I MADE IT. 
Into T2 I went as I went for another wardrobe change- fashion show, fashion show, fashion show at Ironman (The Office reference...anyone?) Ok, I proudly put on my ACS Team Familia singlet and Vision Quest visor, cover every inch of my body I could find with glide, vaseline, sunblock, etc. Take a swig of water and get going. 
I tried to remember to ease into the first 5miles. Ease into was no problemo. I was going a snails pace and happy to be shuffling along. I tried to tell myself it was ok, that at mile 6 I would pick it up. I tried a gel on the 1/2 hour as planned but that quickly made me feel queezy. Taking in sips of water, and forcing salt stick down was about the best I could do. Mile 6 approached and it was time to pick it up to race pace. The only thing I could do was hold onto the jog pace I was going. 
Shortly after I was approached by a runner named Pat. He told me that he had been walking and when he saw me jog by he decided to jog. That my pace was perfect for him and he asked if I could pace him because he was nervous that he was going to have to walk the whole thing and not make it. I said of course, but told him I was short for words as I was trying not to barf or pass out. He would remind us how hard the swim and bike were and I would remind him that we were running and were focusing on moving forward. He quickly picked up my positive vibes and then became a cheerleader for me when I started to struggle. After the second hill, on the short way back up after the turn around at mile 21, I had to walk and jog when I could. I had paced him for about 13miles and he could keep going so I told him to finish strong. It was now dark and I was wearing my glow sticks. It turned into "ok jog to the aid station" ok "jog to the next sign" execute piece by piece. The whole day was a series of trying to execute- piece by piece.


The lovely thing about being out ALL DAY- I got to see a beautiful sunset on the lake, and then got to appreciate the lake at night with the moon out. Not many get to see that, right?


The last down hill on Shermer into the finisher's shoot, really is as wonderful as they say. Music blaring, lights a blur, and crowd going nuts. Mike Riley (I didn't realize it was him at first) waving his towel yelling YOU are an IRONMAN. I don't remember the song playing, but I remember trying to dance and high five the best I could. I actually don't remember him saying the exact words, just a blur of cheering and excitement.


Crossing the line at 16:18:03. All I felt was RELIEF. I did it. It wasn't like Madison, I actually made each cut off. Did I really finish? Did it count? I got my medal, and my finisher's shirt- and tomorrow I would buy my finisher's jacket (silly material things, but things I was looking forward to all year)
Swim- 2:13:39
Bike - 7:54: 01
Run- 5:56:46
Total- 16:18:03
Not exactly my goal times. But I am an Ironman finisher! I look forward to lining up at that start line again in a few months at Ironman Wisconsin 2012 where I hope it will be just FUN. 
Don't get me wrong, I know it's going to be a grueling and tough day, but it will be fun to see how much faster my swim time can be... fun to ride a course I love and know like the back of my hand after countless hours spent looping.... fun to run a course on my campus where every corner and turn hold a memory.... fun to see so many friends and family members on the course.... fun to give high fives to my fellow teammates racing... fun to try to give it all I have and see what my body can do.
While I did have moments in the long day to chat with fellow participants, that probably cost me time off of the clock. That's ok. Maybe that's why I'm not gunning for a Kona slot. While I love the process of improvement, and I love to get faster and stronger, I think I'll always be a participant versus a racer, and I'm ok with that. Each race has it's own goal. Maybe shorter races I'll try to podium, or maybe eventually try to qualify for Boston, or maybe get a faster swim for a 5K race.. or maybe ... or maybe... :)  (who knows, if I'm still doing this at 60 maybe Kona could be a possibility!)
It's all the little ideas of "oooo that sounds like fun...."  that keep me participating. 


So for anybody who has made it to the end of this blog post. If you've had a little whisper in your head of "oh that sounds cool, but I'm not sure if I could" regardless of what it is... GO FOR IT!-  Sometimes we need to tell our heads to shut up so we can hear what God is trying to say to our hearts. 

So enjoying this week off- but already slighlty miss training (that's a good sign, right?) I'm taking this week and will slowly start to build back up- Next post- race report
IRONMAN WISCONSIN- SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Barn Camp- TCH does Wisconsin

http://www.thecyclinghouse.com/camps/wisconsin/
next camp June 3-9, 2013

June 4-10, 2012
(I only made it to arrive Friday June 8, ride Saturday June 9 and depart Sunday after a swim session in the lake.


I found this group after doing a search on the world wide web.
I typed in my spring break dates and the words "triathlon camp" into google. The cycling house popped up for a camp in Tucson, Arizona. I emailed the director, Owen Gue and told him my goals for the year. He told me the head coach Brendan Halpin and raced IM CDA before and that the camp would be a good fit for me. He said that they would do everything they could so that I could get the most out of my spring break trip.
I signed up. It was awesome.


When they said they'd be coming to Wisconsin, I said, "See you there!" A few months later and 3.5hours from Chicago- that's in Friday traffic, it's actually only 30min from Madison, WI I arrived at Bethel Horizons near Governor Dodge State Park in Dodgeville, WI.
I had ridden here before, doing the Dairyland Dare, the Horribly Hilly Hundreds and Robbie's Gran Fondo, and I think it's great out here. The hills and scenery are perfect for riding.


It was two weeks before my race- so I was here to ride and have a good time. I was going to go along along with whatever the camp set up. After about 75miles, the heat got to me and I jumped in the van. I normally would have been pissed about calling it a day early, but again, I was there for happy riding, and was enjoying the company of the other campers and the challenges of the hills. The coaches were also great.


I met some very nice athletes and got some great advice that weekend. 
Governor Dodge State Park is also only about 2miles from the Barn so a great spot for open water swimming. We went on Saturday and went again on Sunday morning where I got some valuable sighting practice with the coaches- thanks!
Overall a great weekend and I wish I could have attended the whole camp- it's a MUST for anybody planning on doing Ironman Wisconsin or for anybody who loves great hilly climbing. Healthy food, and a great group of coaches and campers, sign up!
 
 

June 3, 2012 Diamond Lake Open Water Challenge 5K Swim

http://www.swimdloc.com/category/dlocnews/

I wasn't sure what to expect from this event. Marty had printed it out and suggest I give it a try. So I signed up. (the theme of this year, not sure what it is I'm signing up for, looks fun / challenging, so going to sign up)

It was another event where I was going by myself (well not ever really by myself because God is always with me, and sometimes easiest to hear Him when I am doing these things on my own.)

Even when you are with a ton of people, it's still you and your thoughts. These last few weeks have been excellent for my mental focus to think about what my plan is, executing the plan, and reflecting on how it went.

(Nutrition in green again)

I woke up to give myself enough time to eat 600-700 calories before the start of the swim. I had 4 cups of applesauce (200 calories), 2 scoops of Melissa's protein (about 100), and a banana (90) to drink I had coffee in the car on the way (60), then I decided to mix 2 scoops of Carbo Pro into 8oz of Coconut Water to get the rest of the calories in (250) total 700 calories

Felt good and easy to digest

10 min before the "race" I had 1 - 100 GU Vanilla gel pack w/ caffeine (given to me by a fellow swimmer because I forgot mine in the car)

The word "race" was in quotation marks like that because it did not feel like a race at all. It felt like somebody was having a BBQ at their lake house, invited a bunch of people, and decided that everybody was going to go out swimming. 

The swim took place on pretty Diamond Lake in Cassopolis, Michigan. You have to park your car on the main island, and then take a barge across the island. Once you get there, packet pick up was one table long, and the athlete area to get ready was on somebody's porch :) The race start was off of the boat launch from her deck. :)

I was good on nerves as I'm usually a wreck before open water swims. I spoke to Coach Kris on the phone and she told me to pick up the arm cadence/stroke count every buoy so was going to try and focus on that. We get out to the start, there were MAYBE 10-15 of us, the race director blows a whistle and we were off. 2 - 2.5K loops- I was instantly alone in the water- as everybody swam ahead- something I'm used to so wasn't a big deal. The water temp didn't feel too bad compared to CDA last weekend. Looking back, I made this mistake in MOWS last year, but I was going way too easy. I don't know if I was nervous about getting too tired too soon, but focusing too much on my stroke, as I tried to stretch out every stroke, but on the way back from the out and back we hit some chop, not terrible but made it more challenging and tough to find a strong pull- I also found myself pausing a lot to sight- something I didn't do as much in Wildflower because I would get disorientated and couldn't stay straight. I was horrified to look down at my watch at the end of the first loop to see that 1:48min had already passed for 1.5 miles that was SUPER slow. My 1.2 at Wildflower was 54min so that means that I added 66min to 0.3miles?? What?? I didn't take a gel because Melissa told me not to, but I'm glad now that I didn't bother fussing with all that, time I couldn't afford to use any more time. As I was rounding the turn around, one of the kayakers shouted to me if I was on my 2nd or 3rd loops- I told him my second and he yelled back to "get it going" because I wasn't moving in the water. The slower I was the stronger the chop got and the more difficult it was to see the buoys. I swallowed a bunch of water as I would get slapped down from the chop, but my stomach was good! I stopped my watch when I rounded the buoy at the start. When I got out of the water I was beyond disappointed. to see that it took me 3:44:30. That's a long ass time to be in the water in less than tropical temperatures. My Garmin also said 4.87miles! Those things are often off, but could be a good indicator for how all over the place I was.

All I could think was "get me warm" so with help (everybody was super nice btw) I peeled off my suit and threw on my sweatshirt, I was super thankful for the sun out today. When I got out of the water, they were already giving the awards and all of the BBQ was finished and they were already cleaning up. There was some pasta left so I had one scoop of mostaccioli in red sauce and a mini bagel with crunchy peanut butter on it. 

People were commenting that it was a tough swim so felt a tiny bit better but spirits were low. I get back to the car and mix some of Melissa's protein in water for more food. I get out of my wet underclothes and start to feel better as I start the drive home. 

I found my eyes getting heavy on the drive so had to stop. Got some unsweetened ice tea and some freshly popped butter / salt popcorn- (emotional choice Melissa :/ but it was delicious.) It kept me awake and helped. I wanted to cry over my popcorn but the tears never came. I made another stop to get gas and make sure I wasn't sleepy and looked down at my phone to find texts from Coach Kris, Melissa and Lynn and felt grateful that they were checking in. I spoke to my sister briefly and told her it was a tough morning without going into detail. After I hung up, that's when the tears came. Not even sure what I was crying about, probably more about the fact that it didn't go the way I wanted and this can be an emotional sport. They were quick, and didn't go into a "poor me" attitude. I was probably also tired. It's also when I'm by myself I'm more likely to get emotional. I got myself together and called Lynn and we just chatted without judgement so that made me feel better. 

CDA is going to be choppy. CDA is going to be cold. But I know I can get out of that water in 2hours. After reflecting I think I just went to easy, the same mistake I did at MOWS last August. I need to do like Chrissie says and "smash" myself during training too, treat it like a race day. I need to go out way harder and rest only when I need to catch my breath. I think without thinking about it, I think I'll tire out. If I tire out, it'll be towards the end, and I know that I'll swim through it, but I can't afford to take so long in the beginning. 1hr 48min for just over 1.5miles is RIDICULOUS and NOT going to cut it. . The focus these next to weeks is going to be as much open water as possible. I have the stroke, I know what to do, I know what my body needs to do and look like to be most efficient, I just need to have the physical and mental endurance to be able to execute and sustain it. 

Veronica's Race Preview, Coeur d' Alene, Idaho- May 26-29

 Ok- I'm going to try and write every detail . For the sake of anybody ever traveling to CDA on their own and to be specific about nutrition as I try to dial in. Food will be in green, workout details in blue- I tend to feel self conscious about how slow my workouts can be, so including them anyways because they are what they are. 


The night before I took my bike to Get a Grip  http://www.getagripcycles.com/ to get my bike all packed up. One of the perks of being a Chicago Tri Club member is that you get to rent their bike boxes for free. http://www.chicagotriclub.com/ (Thanks Henry for the tip!) The guys are always great there, they did a race check and realized I needed a new chain and cassette. $! That's ok. $50 to pack it up.  (I really need to learn to just do it myself, but I don't trust myself enough)The also realized that the CTC boxes have been used and abused to the limit, broken strap here, faulty wheel there, so they unpacked a brand new box for me :)
SATURDAY- MAY 26
Woke up around 4amish, had about 8oz of cocunt water Zico brand. Around 6amish had a Vegn Whole Food Energy Bar-Berry Flavor with Orange Juice on the first flight.At the Denver airport 9:30am I needed something more- medium (10oz) coffee from Einsteins with honey and one splenda, an egg white and turkey sausage sandwich on a whole wheat thin bagel, and a rice krispie squar (oops), gingerale on the second flight, no snacks
I left Chicago early Saturday morning, flew Southwest airlines. http://www.southwest.com/ They are the cheapest when it comes to carrying on a bike box onto the plane ($50)
I googled and called the first bike shop that came up on google- Bicycle Sales and Service- http://www.bicycleservice.com/. The man I spoke to on the phone was very helpful and suggested a few tri clubs to try to contact while I was out there. I took my bike to them to get assembled $60- (common theme is being giving young mechanics money to do something that I need to learn for myself)
When I arrived in Spokane, got my rental car and headed right for the bike shop. (Yay gps maps on the iphone!- Don't forget your car charger if you're renting a car. For race day, I'm going to take the $50 shuttle instead and use their taxi cab services to go to and from the locations, the hotel is only about 3miles from race start and expo.

I dropped it off and went to packet pick up for my 1/2 marathon stuff - even though I wasn't going to run it- I decided I would run 13 on my own here, but use Sunday as a training day. http://www.cdamarathon.com/ 
The event was small compared to even the smallest Chicago 5K event with about 4 tents in an outdoor mall. While there I discovered a bike shop that also sold triathlon equipment. 
They were more high end then the other shop and cheaper to assemble ($50)- oh well, next time. http://www.verticalearth.com/ I was able to pick up a warm cap for swimming.  Lunch was a large pulled chicken sandwich, with very little bbq sauce- the kind where they give you the chicken (chicken was pulled, so not fried which was good) and you add your own sauce, plus some kettle corn.

I drove down to the lake to check the scene out. I started conversation with the various triathletes who were out and about, one guy told me that he's not swimming in "this shit yet" and another older man was putting on a wetsuit. I'll find out how bad it really is. I grabbed some food and by this time my bike was ready to be picked up. They let me keep my car there so that was good because me rental jetta was way too small for both box and bike.

Ironman CDA swim start

Once I had my bike, I decided  to drive the course. The route in town is a series of turns, so tough to really go super fast but once you stretch out there are places to coast. The course is two loops- and the loops are essentially two out and backs. It's a very scenic course, and I'm glad I got to drive and preview it because come race day, I won't be paying attention to the scenery. There are no hills that are above 6% grade, but there are a few long ones. There's a long 1mile climb or so off of lake coeur d' alene drive and then on the 95S there is about a 2mile climb- which you essentially go over each climb 4times. The decents are fast and if you're not careful you can catch a nasty cross wind. 
I was surprised to see so many cyclists on the course because I was under the impression that it was too dangerous to ride on the highway with the traffic- but by the looks of it, the shoulders were wide enough. I did pull over and help a guy who need a valve extender to blow up his tire. I got the chance to chat a bit and he said the roads were ok to drive on, just stay on shoulder, watch out for idiots, and careful for flats.

Driving south on 95

Once I finished driving. I parked, changed and did a quick up and back by lake coeur d' alene drive- the wind was surprisingly challenging for only a quick spin I put my running shoes on and did an easy hour- also surprisingly slower with the wind and deceiving false flats/ gradual climb.
Must have erased bike on accident- it was about 30min- a little over 8miles, the run was 1:03:29 for 6.01 miles
By this time it was already getting a little late and wanted to make sure I got food and sleep and checked into the hotel.Guesthouse Inn-  http://www.guesthouseintl.com/hotels/coeurdalene
Dinner was Scholtkey's deli and then a stop at the Safeway- Chicken Noodle soup with a large cobb salad (only ate about 1/2 of it, with flatbread- no cheese on the salad) with Carrot Juice (stubborn chest cough won't go away so trying to boost immune system) Coconut water and rice pudding (oops) I took a lactaid with it, couldn't resist, rice pudding is a favorite- and i figured I could use the carbs.
Decent hotel and price, only about 3miles from city park, and it has a fridge and microwave. 


SUNDAY - MAY 27
 I woke up at 5:40, late, took my medicine and started getting ready. About 6:30 I ate- 100 calories of natural applesauce, mixed with 2 scoops of your protein, 1 banana- and starbucks instant vanilla coffee (60 calories)
I had sent a few messages to some different groups- TriSpokane club, a local swimming club, and Lake City Tri. Tawnya was the friendliest and most helpful- she invited me to join her meeting at starbucks at 7:00 so we can see the start of the Marathoners and so that she can give me some helpful tips. I found them on facebook and they were great. http://www.lakecitytri.org/ 
One other rider, Will joined. us We rode the first 1/2, of the first loop, and then on Lake Coeur d'Alene drive, on the way down, we took a right onto Yellow Stone Train where we did part of the olympic course, extra climbing but SUPER pretty and a very fun descent.

After about 22miles I met went back with them to the car, refueled and went back out on my own. Tawnya was nice enough to give me an extra CO2 cartridge, just in case, but luckily I didn't need it. She was beyond helpful, inviting me to a club bbq after (I didn't make it because I spent the day riding) and  pointing out lots of great tips and suggesting where to swim the next day.

On the ride yes, I went through 2, 400 calories gel/water bottles and then 4 just water bottles- I took in about 4 salt stick tablets and 1 PowerBar Performance Vanilla Crisp bar throughout, and 3/4 banana in between (1/4 when I finished) for the total ride- felt hungry and sluggish- not dehydrated 

It was a very comfortable riding day temperature wise. Temperatures were cool- I started with a jacket and gloves, peeled later to just sleeves and the wind vest. I very much underestimated the difficulty of the wind. Totally slowed me down- Out on the 95- going 18miles south it was into the wind- on flat, struggling to go 14mph, on the way back on the same flat- easy 22mph- maybe there were more false flats then I realized. But the course is basically through town, an out and back up to Higgins point up Lake Couer d Alene drive, through town, South on the 95 for about 18 miles, back north on the 95, through town and repeat. The town has no climbing, tiny rollers- Lake CDA drive has one good climb at about 6% for about 1 mile. The 95 has a few longer climbs, one at about 6% for about 2miles- tricky with the wind- and another one at about 5% for about 1mile- so you essentially go up those 4times- nothing higher than that, but they're long and they slow me down :/ The descents were fast, but you need to be careful because the roads aren't that awesome. I think my max speed was about 34.3 because I'm a chicken (My max ever is 41.5 down Mt. Lemmon)

121.33 total miles for 9:02:12 hours, average of 13.4mph average- 5250 calories. Feeling pretty bad about that- I should've been faster at this point in my training. This was including the climbs at the beginning, so tricky to see what I'll do at Ironman- it should be enough for the cutoff times, just need to be careful about getting a flat. 

No run or swim after- shower and on my way to Sandpoint to hang out with Julie.

I had 2 scoops of your protein Melissa's rice pudding for recovery. 

Dinner I went to a friends BBQ and had a burger, no cheese, with sweet potato salad, fruit, 1 beer and a little desert, oh and a small bag of lays potato chips :/

Bike Special Needs Area

MONDAY - MAY 28

This morning I gave myself plenty of time before swimming. I allowed myself to sleep in a bit. I was going to try and swim right at 7am, but slept till about 8am. I took my medicine at about 6:30am, went back to bed for a bit then at about 8:30am I had a hard boiled egg, no yolk, a waffle with light syrup and peanut butter, a banana, 1 50calorie cup with 1 scoop your protein, and starbucks instant vanilla coffee.

Sander's Beach entrance near CDA library

I ventured out to Sander's Beach- where Tawnya suggested, no boats, along the shore so you can stand, and a marker for a half way point- to the doc and back is 1.2- My goal was to try and get an hour + in. Right before the swim I had about 8oz of coconut water. 

54degree-ish water- brr

There were 3 other swimmers there putting on their suits, so that made me feel better, we were chatting it up a bit. The swim was terrible. I made it about 36 min with warm cap like Coach Kris said, but it felt like it was choking me, swim cap and with vaseline on the face like Melissa said. Hands and feet suffered, the booties may be worth trying- I think the temp was about 54? 55? It was also a bit choppy. Tawnya said to expect chop. Chop plus these temps then I'm in big trouble. Silly. I'm hoping it goes up at least 10 degrees in the next 4 weeks. I didn't panic but  it was very difficult to get going and get breathing going. I tried to relax, I turned around right where I thought was the turnaround, but my watch said 0.65miles for 36:58min. yikes- I'm back at square one. Like I had forgotten everything that I learned. I know it will be better on race day, I have no other choice. I'm excited for the 3mile open water swim because I won't have the option to turn around early, or get out because I'm uncomfortable.  

I had to drop off my bike to get packed up (again, something I pay a young bike mechanic to do when I need to learn myself- note to self, learn to use those damn CO2 cartridges, I always mess them up)

After I dropped the bike off, went back to the hotel to get myself together- the swim zapped my energy and left with me a headache. Took in some carrot juice and some apple sauce with a banana Melissa's protein, 

Took a shower and ended up taking a quick nap. Woke, up got myself together, changed to get ready for a run- got the bike and headed for Lake CDA drive to get ready to run. Took in some water and a bite of the Performance Protein Bar Vanilla Crisp (I think I found the source of the rumbly tummy, ast time I get those. I also took a swig of some diet coke for a boost) 

Start of my run- towards HigginS

Started a very slow run. Decided I was going to do 13.1 so that I could wear my 1/2 Marathon shirt- I have a thing about wearing race shirts for races I didn't complete. So, I did the 1/2 Marathon, just a little late :)

lake CDA drive, I will prob be running part of this in the dark

I went up the drive so that I could get that in, (which is part of the course) and then part of the course through town. It was a beautiful 70degrees with a nice wind (tough at some points, this race is just going to be windy, I need to deal with it) but good running weather. After about 9miles, I was only taking in water so stopped at the car- I only had those Vegn gels that Melissa said to ignore, but needed something so took it. and finished up the run. I knew it was going to much slower. When running back towards the car, the sun hit me so that I could see my shadow on the ground. When I noticed it slouching, I would throw my shoulders back and my hips forward and I was able to comfortable get back to an easy 9:40 pace (still slow for a 1/2 marathon, this run was just EXTRA slow) - tried to think of Chrissie when she talked about smashing yourself even on training days when I wanted to stop after an hour. 13.21 miles, 2:19:46, 10:34pace- SLOW!! After the run I intended to find some "clean recover food" but found myself at Jimmy John's instead. I had the roast beef / turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, mayo and avocado spread on their class french roll- no cheese, no chips or cookie I went back to the lake, where the swim start is, and walked into the lake up to my hips to give myself an "ice bath" I watched a little boy play in the water in a full wetsuit. Pretty funny, in a few weeks there will be 2500 adults ready to play in the water in wetsuits. I tried to envision the start of the race, the buoys, running out of the water to loop, taking in a gel, and running back in to do another loops- then envisioned where transition was going to be and tried to get it all in. (I was really trying to take my mind off of the cold water on my now numb feet)

I went back and treated myself to frozen yogurt (oops) I know I need to clean up again so won't be having the dairy again for a while. 

Recovery, travel day tomorrow, back at it on Wednesday. Three weeks. 

Avia Wildflower May 5, 2012

Avia Wildflower May 5, 2012

Swim 54:46,   2:50 pace - better but not where I want it

 T1- 5:01- yikes!

Bike- 4:00:24 L -  13.9 pace- slow!

T2- 3:31

Run- 2:25:18- 11:05 pace- shuffling!

Total: 7:29:01

(I think this course was about 1mile short on the bike and 0.5 short on the run, so not confident It was a full 70.3) Here are the profiles:

http://www.tricalifornia.com/index.cfm/WildFlower2012-course_descriptions_long_course.htm

Wins, Lessons Learned, Things to Remember

I write this two weeks later as I haven’t had the chance to sit down and write. Would’ve like to do this as race is still fresh in my mind, but the lack of sleep has caught up to me. Things to remember, I’m not 21 anymore. Can’t run on 4 hours of sleep like I used to, I need to stop pretending like I can. After a terrible day of riding on Saturday (the heat, and wind on the course got to me, and 20mile run from the night before) trying to reflect as I’m in a higher volume push for the next weeks before CdA. Before Wildflower, I was already getting sick of training and just wanted to race, so this was a good chance for me to “reset”

Here goes, I’ll try to incorporate nutrition info into the recap as well. The last two weeks before the race, I had been cramping a ton. Every time I went in the water. Calf, shin, foot, hamstring, Melissa told me my muscles were pissed off at me and it made sense. She started having me take MG/Calcium pills, and I am horrible at taking vitamins. I need to remember to leave them out so I take them at night. She also had me put on MG lotion to help with. Even a week later I need to remember to take zinc so that sniffles turn into full blown colds with lack of sleep and travel.

The week leading up to the race, I basically tried to load up on calories. Probably not the best calories, but for some reason I thought I needed calories- Tried to still stay away from soy, dairy, and gluten, but culprits still snuck themselves in occasionally- I noticed in some post race pictures some pinchable belly fat that never used to be there showing through my tri top, so going back to really cutting back on the sugar for the next 6 weeks. When I was on top of it, energy was much better. Time to cut waaay back.  So really tried to eat more at meals, and suck down 2-3 bottles of coconut water a day. I took the salt in the form of salt stick vs putting it in the coconut water and also tried to add a few bottles of low cal Gatorade.

Friday am (day before race) Tara picked me up and had pizza waiting for me- took a little bit to be polite, I had eaten protein enough in the am to make sure that I wouldn’t be hungry later on. Everything bagel with egg and turkey with a coffee, apple juice banana

I actually felt good vs instantly hungry and didn’t feel the need to eat.

The journey wasn’t bad on the way down there- middle of nowhere California- get there and objective was to get organized before getting a brick in.

Got packet pick up- got my bike, yay tribike transport. Had a pretlze, a low cal large Gatorade and ½ a chicken burrito with rice and beans (no cheese)

Tried  out the blueseventy and hated it, felt heavy- Orca it was going to be- swam about 15 min total- actually felt good to be in the lake. It made me think about how far I had come since my first disaster race open water swim in 2008. I was actually looking forward to getting in the open water.

We took our bikes for a “spin” up Lynch hill and then down- got pretty nervous with turns and conditions and new wheels. I realized that I’m a big wuss and flying down descents still make me nervous.  

Packed up and made our way to Motel 6, King City- WAY further then we thought- if doing a hotel- try Paso Robles, if not CAMP- we should’ve camped- next time, also next time we’ll know what we’re doing and we’ll make a weekend out of it. Several people do the long course on Saturday then the Olympic on Sunday which actually looks pretty fun. (We drove back to San Fran right after the race)

For dinner we had a lovely Denny’s Dinner, I had my traditional spaghetti and meatballs, no cheese, salad, no cheese, and chicken soup- pancake balls for dessert- again, this race was going to see how much my stomach could take without getting sick- Still sucking down the coconut water- 2 large liters and the low calorie Gatorade because I didn’t want to cramp. Felt good

Woke up early took medicine, made coffee- got bottles ready. (One bottle- four scoops carbo pro- 6 capsules salt stick- salty!) packed enough gels for one an hour- plus a Performance brand endurance/vanilla crisp bar. Other bottle was water- forgot to bring a “throw away” for the water,  oh well, I’ll get another get a grip bottle. At 5am I ate- 1.5 cups apple sauce with 2 scoops Melissa protein. Still feeling good. 15 min before race- 2 salt stick- 10 min before- 1 gel- Tara already urging me to get going as I was still fussing.

The waves let out every 5 min, so the only chance to get in the water was right before your wave- Was able to swim about 100 yards, then stand there waiting for the gun to go off- I saw Elisa Litora and said a quick hello, nerves were pretty good.  I was trying to keep in mind- this is a training day. Race hard. Have fun.  I knew I had been working on the swim, and Coach Kris told me to shoot for 45min. I knew that would be hard, but it gave me a boost to know that she thought I could do 45min. I never panicked (win) and even was aggressive when people tried to swim into me, not letting my form get compromised (win). I did realize when I tried to start to “swim hard” , my form would go to mush and I would zig zag all over (lesson). After meeting with Marcia we worked on my head position when breathing to keep myself in balance. As I stretched it out and thought about strong and steady- lots of voices in my head, Fitz, Marcia, Melissa- I knew I just needed to focus on every stroke. When I got out of the water I immediately looked down at my watch and was disappointed with my 54min time- but realized it was 6min faster than my PR (win) and 10 min faster than Racine (win) I shook it off and tried to remember what to do in transition area! First race of the season leaves you a little out of sorts-  Oh and no cramping (win!) I felt twinges in the calves but nothing pulled, very relieved. I wasn’t exhausted coming out of the water, giving me confidence that  I could keep it up for another loop. CDA goal is to come in under 2 hours-no more of this “I just want to make the cut off times” crap- that’s not enough.

Got settled into the bike, trying to remember to stay on the nutrition.  I ended up taking a gel every ½ hour instead of hour, eating the power, and sipping the bottle every 15. It ended up being a good combo and never felt hungry (I notoriously feel hungry on the rides, and once you feel hungry you know you’re in for a long day- cycle of low nutrition, slowing down, etc) I also took in 2 pieces of banana when offered- no nausea, no GI issues (win) The bike took way longer than I wanted, but tried to maintain a decent pace, while catching up to others in my wave that passed me on the swim. (Two bathrooms stops- with the heat of the day- I knew this was good because that meant I wasn’t starting to get dehydrated)

T2 much better-Took in another gel, and got going. I’m glad Kris told me not to walk, there was shuffling for sure, but didn’t walk- MUCH slower run than I wanted- but hell of a course- mile 4 I was on my toes, pulling with my arms, determined to not walk- it was a slow shuffle up, but I also knew that if I started to walk I would cramp, so glad I didn’t- well one bathroom stop-

I took one gel every 4 miles, and ½ Gatorade ½ water when I could, plus electrolytes from a spectator, again tried to take in more than I usually would versus staying conservative.

Overall a good day. BEAUTIFUL course and a part of the country I don’t get to hang out in too often. It was just me and Tara- I knew that Dan Litorwa was racing so in my head pictured him yelling at me to have a higher cadence on the bike, and that helped, but not knowing anybody on the course actually wasn’t terrible- I focused on what I was doing, very different from marathons in the past where you know a ton of people and it’s a fun day- and in Racine where you have a ton of people racing with you. This was a different kind of race, friendly conversations here and there- but stuck to keeping my feet going. I was shuffling up a hill while others were walking, when one guy said “now there’s a hill runner, keep it up girl!” (win) People don’t say things like that about ME J My friends win things while I try to not get DNF next to my name. Every person racing participates for their own reasons. As I start the season, and I get tired of training or just want a weekend, I remember that I love to participate and I love this communityJ I’m ready for CDA. No doubt , no fear, only logistics. You can only hope for a perfect race day, and who knows the bumps that can get thrown at you, but I’ll be happy and grateful to line up at that starting line!  

The Cycling House

April 3-8, 2012
Tuscon, Arizona


www.thecyclinghouse.com




My first ever camp, and first every traveling / cycling experience was a complete success. I've traveled in the US for foot races before, but never for a bike trip. 
By recommendation of a friend, one of the perks of being a Chicago Tri Club member is that you can rent travel bike boxes for free with your membership- you just need to put down a deposit of $25. I was initially going to rent a bike, but am SO glad I decided to bring the bike. Get a Grip was great with the packing and Southwest is even better with carrying it on board- only $50 each way, compared to other airlines who carge $200+ each way for oversized luggage / bikes.


When I arrived I felt a bit odd traveling alone, and joining a camp where I did not know anybody else, but was instantly made to feel comfortable by the crew. The staff has an incredible amount of experience, athletic ability, knowledge, and overall spirit for fun. 


The week I went, the group happened to be particularly small, with only 7 clients so the staff to client ratio was great :) I am a triathlete and the in house pro triathlete and coach with especially great. 


Tuesday Day 1 everybody was settling in- the house was nothing shy of spectacular.
We went for a fun couple of hour spin, then I was able to get a good short hilly brick in. 
     

We get back and dinner was an impressive spread of nutritious, tasty selections. Everybody was extra considerate to help me with my gluten free / soy free/ dairy free requests.

Wednesday  - 45-65 mile ride (option to add or shorten, I did not add or shorten- just rode as is) nice 7 mile climb from San Manuel back to Tucson. Probably one of the best roads I've ever ridden on- I felt like I was in the middle of a magazine shoot. Another great day in the sun (oh yeah, also got incredibly sun burnt on this trip with some crazy tan lines- ouch)

Thursday - Gates Pass. 65 miles, hilly, options to shorten up if needed, Matis's Mexican 

restaurant for Mexican food

 Super fun, tough climb- some good grades in there, felt great to get the blood flowing. One of those rides where on some of the climbs you want to unclip and walk, but know you won't so just push to the top, out of breath and all. Beautiful view. 

Throughout the week we were also able to go to the local beautiful outdoor pool to get drill work and laps in. Made going back to an indoor pool pretty terrible! 

Friday - Mount Lemmon- one of those rides you have to do if out in the Tuscon area. 21 miles of climbing. The grades weren't terrible, but with patches of wind, and steady climbing around 5% or so for 20 miles, you felt it, and then feel great when you're done! The view were spectacular, changing from desert to pine as you increased in elevation and decreased in temperature. Unforgettable.

Saturday - Madera Canyon 50 miles, big climb at the end.

Last big ride of the week- Another epic ride with no easy grades- Super fun- Spencer let me hug his wheel the whole way back and we FLEW. Awesome. Followed by a stubborn brick in the heat after.But then a lovely welcome back to the house. Our swim time ended up being playing in the pool at the house :)

    

Overall walked away from this camp, sore, but a better, stronger, smarter rider. Thanks for a great week TCH!!!

For the love of cereal

        Of all the things that I've been having trouble cutting out, I have found my cereal to be the most difficult. Beer and cupcakes and chips have been also hard, but I never realized how much I actually go through cereal.... I was told to cut gluten/soy/dairy. I was given a very specific plan with approved food lists and meals. I have obviously been having trouble sticking to the plan. This week may give it a shot because it's recovery week. I noticed that with my workouts averaging 15hours a week, the portions were not enough, but this week is less, so will give it a shot again.
      Back to my love of cereal. Since I can remember Honey Nut Cherrios have always been a favorite. I was told if I'm going to eat starchy carbs, go gluten free- I'm not allergic to it, but after the most disgusting cereal experience I've ever had, I started looking at the nutrition labels and starting thinking why? The gluten fre had more calories and more carbs per serving- but my favorite Honey Nut more sugar. Again, I sat there thinking why? I decided that Ironman is my goal this year, but an occasional bowl of delicious honey nut cherrios is not going to destroy my race. I will continue to make good choices about what I fuel up with, how much I'm eating, and the effefts it has on my body and energy, but Mr. Honey Bee- I'm glad you're back in my life.

Paleo Pumpkin Muffins

Had an extra can of pumpkin from the Thai Style Chicken Pumpkin Soup so thought I would try this out. Not bad, tastes a bit like pumpkin bread.
I also added a little molasses for some more flavor- and I didn't have "pumpkin spice" available so used this recipe for pumpkin spice:
Measure 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon into a small bowl or cup.
Makes 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice.
Add 1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger.
Add 1/8 teaspoon of ground allspice or ground cloves.
Add 1/8 teaspoon of ground nutmeg.
Stir to blend. (makes 1 tsp of pumpkin spice blend)
I followed the rest of the recipe pretty closely (only I doubled it)
ORIGINAL RECIPE:
Paleo Pumpkin Muffins from PaleoPlan.com
Makes 6 muffins.
Approximate cooking time: 40 minutes
Ingredients
1½ cups almond flour
3/4 cup canned pumpkin (or cook and puree pumpkin yourself)
3 large eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/8 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup raw honey (optional)
2 tsp almond butter
1 Tbs sliced almonds
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350℉.
Coat 6 muffin tins with coconut oil (or use paper muffin cups and add 1/2 tsp melted coconut oil to batter).
Mix all ingredients and pour evenly into tins.
Bake for 25 minutes on the middle rack.
Sprinkle almonds on top immediately after taking them out of the oven.

Thai-Style Chicken Pumpkin Soup

Not sure how crazy I am about this one. I did have two generous bowls and it did make me pretty happy though. Not sure if it cooked too long and the citrus / vinegar was too strong, or not creamy enough for your typical pumpkin soup? Overall not bad. I'm going to try the butternut squash soup next as far as soups go- so this one is good for a different taste.
(Again adapted from Best Loved Slow cooker recipes)- I need to order that Paleo book....

Ingredients (as is makes 4 - 6 servings in a smaller crockpot- I have a 5qt so I also increase ingredients)
*1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes (I used about 12)
1 large white onion, thinly sliced ( I only had red in the house, it was fine)
3 cloves garlic, minced (I used 6)
1/2 - 3/4 crushed red pepper flakes
1 tbsp minced fresh giner (I only had ground so had to follow the conversion- and used 2 tbsp)
*2 stalks celery trimmed and diced (I used four)
2 carrots, peeled, trimmed and diced (again 4)
1 can (15 ounces) solid- pack pumpkin ( I used 30)
1/2 cup mango nectar
1/2 cup fresh lime juice- I put almost a full cup- probably too much
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter- ( I used almost a cup- could have substituted for almond butter but wanted to use up the last of my peanut butter)
4 cups low- sodium chicken broth (almost 8)
*3 tbs rice vinegar
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro, divided
*1/2 cup heavy cream- (I took it easy on this- not supposed to have it, but oh well)
1 tbsp cornstarch
*2 to 4 cups hot cooked rice (I used Jasmine)
3 green onion, minced
1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, coarsely chopped
lime wedges (optional)


First heat the oil over medium heat, adding chicken to cook, stirring occasionally only about 3 minutes (doesn't need to be completely cooked) Add onion, garlic, giner and red pepper flakes, cook for 1 or 2 minutes longer until mixture is fragrant.

 

        Transfer chicken mixture to slow cooker. Add celebry, carrots, pumpkin, mango nectar, lime juice, peanut butter, broth, and 2 cups of water, stir to combine. Cover; cook on LOW 8 hours or HIGH for 4 hours. 

          Stir in rice vinegar and 1/4 cup cilantro, mix cream and cornstartch together in small mixing bowl. Stir mixture into soup. Turn setting to HIGH. Simmer, unconvered, 10 minutes or until soup thickens.

      
     To serve, put rice in soup bowls. Ladle soup around rice. Sprinkle reaming cilantro, green onions, and peanuts. Squeeze fresh lime juice over soup if desired. (enjoy with Tostitios lime chips if desired :) ) Not exactly on the approved food list- oops!

               

  

 

Slow Cooker! Chicken and Sweet Potato Stew

I had a late start today and thought it would be perfect to try out the new slow cooker. Most recipes call for about 8hours- I ended up leaving it for 10 and it was ok. I won't be able to do this during the week because 10hours is usually the average so any am or pm workouts means I'll be away from home from 12+ hours, no good for a slow cooker. I'll probably be able to get it ready on Sunday mornings, do the workouts for the day 4-5 hours on a different setting if I want to try out different recipes.
All ingredients were bought from whole foods (Jewel would be just fine I'm sure but I was already at the WF, I'm sure Jewel would have been cheaper, but the turkey sausage I used was really fresh and yummy)
Recipe taken and modified from "Crock-Pot Best Loved Slow Cooker Recipes"

The longest part was the chopping which I did the night before. I ended up doubling the recipe, but not using all of it when I put it in the pot.

(I'll include original recipe, and what I added to fit the 5qt size)
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces (I cut about 10)
4 spicy Italian Turkey sausage links (not in recipe, I just added it)
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed (I peeled and cubed 2, but only about 3 fit into the pot)
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed. (I peeled and cubed 2 small potatoes and about 1 cup of cauliflower)
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch slices (I peeled 4)
1 can (28 ounces) whole stewed tomatoes, undrained (I used 4- 14.5 cans- too many, too soupy and wanted it more stewy)
1 teaspoon salt (I added 2)
1 teaspoon paprika (I put about 2)
1 teaspoon celery seeds (2)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper (1)
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon (1/4)
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg (0- I didn't have it, oops)
1 cup fat free low sodium chicken broth (2)
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped (used it to taste for serving)


Combine chicken, (turkey), potatoes (cauliflower), carrots, tomatoes with juice, salt, paprika, celery seeds, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg (oops) and broth in slow cooker. Cover, cook on LOW 6 to 8 hours (10 for me and the apartment didn't burn down) or on HIGH 3 to 4 hours. To serve, sprinkle with basil
(This was for the original recipe for 6 servings- for the 5, 6, or 7 quart double all ingredients like I did for my 5 qt)
I served over a leftover quinoa / brown rice / lentil mix so that it was more like a stew instead of a soup and I liked it this way. You could also add rotini pasta to make it more filling, but not bad served with the rice mix :)