Yesterday, I decided to go on a 5 mile trail run. I wanted to shake up my surroundings a little and just run for the love of running instead of worrying about times and such. About a quarter mile into the run, my foot caught the edge of a rock and twisted over completely. I didn't immediately panic, because this happens to me quite often. Normally, there's a dull pain for about 10 seconds and then I'm fine. That didn't happen this time. It was a sharp and constant pain and I couldn't put any wait on it. And the pain didn't go away. I managed to be able to limp a little and decided to try to walk/run it out (probably not the best decision). My ankle continued to deteriorate. After a mile and a half I had to stop. About an hour later, I could no longer walk. I haven't had this kind of injury in a while. Today I'm still limping.
I have two main concerns at the moment. Luckily, I already have a doctor's appointment Tuesday for my knee so I'll be able to get my ankle looked at. My biggest concern is Ironman 70.3 New Orleans. The race is in less than three weeks. It's supposed to be one of my bigger races of the year and I am concerned this may screw over my running plan. My other concern is that this is the ankle I have had previously reconstructed. I sincerely hope I didn't do any damage to those tendons and ligaments.
Ice and advil are my best friends right now. I'm praying that it gets steadily better and I can run by late next week. I'm praying that my race will be able to go on as planned.
Fight On!
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Monday, March 25, 2013
Foreigners Say the Darnedest Things
Okay, I just have this quick note because it was too long for Twitter but I thought it was hilarious. I was speaking with my friends who is from India and the conversation went as follow:
Him: "How's the boyfriend?"
Me: "He's good. Just visited actually."
Him: "I don't know how you do the distance thing."
Me: "It's just temporary."
Him: "When are you going to get a permanent one?"
Me (after attempting to compose myself several times): "I was talking about the distance, not my boyfriend!"
Oh gosh. Fight on my friends!
Him: "How's the boyfriend?"
Me: "He's good. Just visited actually."
Him: "I don't know how you do the distance thing."
Me: "It's just temporary."
Him: "When are you going to get a permanent one?"
Me (after attempting to compose myself several times): "I was talking about the distance, not my boyfriend!"
Oh gosh. Fight on my friends!
What Motivates You?
Nobody can stay
motivated constantly. There are always moments when you want to stop. There are
moments when you feel disappointed with your performance or are wondering how
you’re supposed to make it 30 more miles to the finish line. To combat this, I’ve
begun writing phrases on electrical tape and putting them on my bike. It’s a
combination of things I know will make me laugh and things I know will make me
motivated to keep going. After all, they say smiling makes even the worst of
pain less. Often I don’t even have to read the words; just knowing they are
there is comforting. I wanted to share some of the phrases that I have used and
see if there are any that you would like to share.
“There are two reasons to stop: a broken
left femur and a broken right femur.”
This one both motivates me and makes
me laugh at its ridiculousness. Obviously, there are other reasons to stop but
it shows that most triathletes will stop for almost nothing. I've seen firsthand
people get stung by sting-rays during the swim and refuse medical attention until
after they finished. I also saw someone crash so bad during a race that they
need stitches to repair the muscle, yet they still finished.
“If you have to ask why, you don’t
understand”
“Smile if you’re not wearing underwear.”
A classic really. Instantly makes
everybody (who wears underwear during a triathlon) laugh and feel better.
“Live for (insert name here)”
Everybody has lost someone that
means a significant amount to them. Remembering them at down moments during
racing and training always makes you motivated to keep going to finish it off
for them.
“The only easy day was yesterday.”
Slogan
of US Navy SEALS
And then there is
the ever popular,
“Pain
is temporary but quitting lasts forever.”
Feel free to share
your thoughts and your favorites.
Fight on my
friends!
Book Review: The End of Your Life Book Club
"I wanted to say so much more -- about the book club, about all she'd done for me, about how grateful I was for everything -- but it didn't seem like the time, it just never seemed like the time. And I knew I would start to cry and didn't want to. Not then. Maybe I didn't want Mom to have to comfort me. Or maybe I was scared that once I started, I wouldn't be able to stop."
One of my passions I indulge in is reading. I find that less and less I meet people that love reading as much as I do. Every time I meet someone, they speak of how they have been meaning to read this or that and how they wish they had more time to read. But in the end, they never get around to it. I, on the other hand, make it a point to make sure I read at least a little each day. Most of my reading is non-fiction. It ranges quite greatly from books about triathlon to mountaineering to political and historical events. I just really love the feeling of getting sucked into a good book and not being able to put it down. However, I am very familiar with the sorrow that can sometimes come with the end of a book. You have just been on this emotional journey and all you want to do is have someone look at you and know how you feel. With book, that doesn't really happen. Writing about them and the involvement they have in your life may help me release this feeling. For this reason, I've decided to include reviews of books I'm reading from time to time. To start, I've just finished The End of Your Life Book Club, by Will Schwalbe.
“What are you reading?”
That’s the question Will Schwalbe asks his mother, Mary Anne, as they sit in the waiting room of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. In 2007, Mary Anne returned from a humanitarian trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan suffering from what her doctors believed was a rare type of hepatitis. Months later she was diagnosed with a form of advanced pancreatic cancer, which is almost always fatal, often in six months or less.
This is the inspiring true story of a son and his mother, who start a “book club” that brings them together as her life comes to a close. Over the next two years, Will and Mary Anne carry on conversations that are both wide-ranging and deeply personal, prompted by an eclectic array of books and a shared passion for reading. Their list jumps from classic to popular, from poetry to mysteries, from fantastic to spiritual. The issues they discuss include questions of faith and courage as well as everyday topics such as expressing gratitude and learning to listen. Throughout, they are constantly reminded of the power of books to comfort us, astonish us, teach us, and tell us what we need to do with our lives and in the world. Reading isn’t the opposite of doing; it’s the opposite of dying.
One of my passions I indulge in is reading. I find that less and less I meet people that love reading as much as I do. Every time I meet someone, they speak of how they have been meaning to read this or that and how they wish they had more time to read. But in the end, they never get around to it. I, on the other hand, make it a point to make sure I read at least a little each day. Most of my reading is non-fiction. It ranges quite greatly from books about triathlon to mountaineering to political and historical events. I just really love the feeling of getting sucked into a good book and not being able to put it down. However, I am very familiar with the sorrow that can sometimes come with the end of a book. You have just been on this emotional journey and all you want to do is have someone look at you and know how you feel. With book, that doesn't really happen. Writing about them and the involvement they have in your life may help me release this feeling. For this reason, I've decided to include reviews of books I'm reading from time to time. To start, I've just finished The End of Your Life Book Club, by Will Schwalbe.
I've posted a synopsis (taken from Amazon) below:
That’s the question Will Schwalbe asks his mother, Mary Anne, as they sit in the waiting room of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. In 2007, Mary Anne returned from a humanitarian trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan suffering from what her doctors believed was a rare type of hepatitis. Months later she was diagnosed with a form of advanced pancreatic cancer, which is almost always fatal, often in six months or less.
This is the inspiring true story of a son and his mother, who start a “book club” that brings them together as her life comes to a close. Over the next two years, Will and Mary Anne carry on conversations that are both wide-ranging and deeply personal, prompted by an eclectic array of books and a shared passion for reading. Their list jumps from classic to popular, from poetry to mysteries, from fantastic to spiritual. The issues they discuss include questions of faith and courage as well as everyday topics such as expressing gratitude and learning to listen. Throughout, they are constantly reminded of the power of books to comfort us, astonish us, teach us, and tell us what we need to do with our lives and in the world. Reading isn’t the opposite of doing; it’s the opposite of dying.
Will and Mary Anne share their hopes and concerns with each other—and rediscover their lives—through their favorite books. When they read, they aren’t a sick person and a well person, but a mother and a son taking a journey together. The result is a profoundly moving tale of loss that is also a joyful, and often humorous, celebration of life: Will’s love letter to his mother, and theirs to the printed page.
Now, my thoughts on the book:
-To begin, I thought it was a very well written book. As a true book lover, I also enjoyed being able to read about all these great books (and getting titles to read). One part of the books discusses how one of their favorite books is a book that loves books, and I found the same thing happened with this book.
-Everybody experiences disease and illness in their life. Therefore, another great aspect of this book is that everybody can relate to it. My grandmother had a long and painful battle with Alzheimer's disease, so I found myself at times thinking about how much I related to the author. One of the unfortunate aspects of terminal diseases is that people generally don't enjoy discussing them. Often that leaves those who are dealing with them feel like no one really relates to them while in actuality millions do. This book made me realize that and made me feel like I wasn't alone in the feelings I had experienced.
-The anecdotes in this book are simply great and show you how good of person his mother was. There should be more people in this world like them. Her work not only involved talking about the issues within the world but actually doing something about it. This book provides a great biography of an amazing woman.
-Lastly, one of the most poignant messages of this book is the people surrounding those with terminal illnesses. A lot of the time, all the focus is on those who are actually sick. But sometimes, it is actually harder for those who are surrounding them. Watching them suffer and knowing you can't do anything about it can be like torture. Knowing someone you love is dying and watching that happen is very difficult to process emotionally. And they are the people that are still there after their loved one is lost trying to pick up the pieces. The best lesson from this book (I personally think) is that we need to focus on the people surrounding those with illness and make sure they are just as okay as those that are sick.
Fight on my friends!
Fight on my friends!
Saturday, March 23, 2013
What We Learned From Toy Story
Ran across this story the other day and wanted to share it (especially with my love for Toy Story and the name of this blog). (Credit: http://blogs.disney.com/oh-my-disney/2013/03/23/what-we-learned-from-toy-story/?cmp=SMC|blgomd|OMDMarch|FB|Learned-ToyStory|InHouse|032313|Text||esocialmedia|||) Also made me start thinking about how this can really apply to everything in life. A lot of times it seems that triathlon can be an individual sport and can even get lonely sometimes. Here's my list of what we learned from Toy Story in triathlon terms:
1. You Can Have More Than One Favorite Toy
You can have more than one favorite sport: swim, bike, run
2. Teamwork
Working out with others is sometimes just what you need
3. Always Keep Extra Batteries Around
Always keep water and some energy around. Never know when you need a pick me up
4. Be Flexible, Improvise
Everything isn't going to go your way in training and especially in a race
5. Play With Your Toys
Ride your bike
6. Don’t Forget To Pack Your “Angry Eyes”
This one is self explanatory
7. Never Underestimate The Little Guys
You never really know who your competitors are but they all made it to the start line and
that's all that really matters
8. Don’t Put The “To Keep” Toys In a Garbage Bag
You can never be too careful with your bike. I have known plenty of people to get their
stolen.
9. No Toy Left Behind
No sport left behind.
10. Don’t Let Them Tell You That You Aren’t a Flying Toy
Never believe in limits. Triathletes especially shatter them daily.
11. Play Nice
Don't piss off other racers.
12. Enjoy Every Moment
Enjoy the race just as much as the finish line.
13. Be Yourself
Again, self-explanatory.
14. Clean Your Room
Clean your bike, it will thank you.
15. Stand Up For What You Believe In
There is a lot of ways to interpret this one. Racing for charity. Seeing others break the
rules. Helping others you see in need.
16. Donate Your Toys To a Good Home
Triathlon is an expensive sport. Help however you can.
17. Toys Don’t Belong On a Shelf
Shoes don't belong in the closet. Bikes don't belong indoors. Swimsuits don't belong in
the bureau.
18. Don’t Hold a Grudge
Against yourself for a bad workout. Against the weather in the winter. Against anything.
19. You’re Braver Than You Think
In triathlon, stepping up to that finish line once is more than most will do in their lives.
Don't forget how big that is.
20. Be a Friend
Whether in practice or a race, whether passing or being passed, always say hi to that
person. It may be just the pick-me-up they need to keep going.
1. You Can Have More Than One Favorite Toy
You can have more than one favorite sport: swim, bike, run
2. Teamwork
Working out with others is sometimes just what you need
3. Always Keep Extra Batteries Around
Always keep water and some energy around. Never know when you need a pick me up
4. Be Flexible, Improvise
Everything isn't going to go your way in training and especially in a race
5. Play With Your Toys
Ride your bike
6. Don’t Forget To Pack Your “Angry Eyes”
This one is self explanatory
7. Never Underestimate The Little Guys
You never really know who your competitors are but they all made it to the start line and
that's all that really matters
8. Don’t Put The “To Keep” Toys In a Garbage Bag
You can never be too careful with your bike. I have known plenty of people to get their
stolen.
9. No Toy Left Behind
No sport left behind.
10. Don’t Let Them Tell You That You Aren’t a Flying Toy
Never believe in limits. Triathletes especially shatter them daily.
11. Play Nice
Don't piss off other racers.
12. Enjoy Every Moment
Enjoy the race just as much as the finish line.
13. Be Yourself
Again, self-explanatory.
14. Clean Your Room
Clean your bike, it will thank you.
15. Stand Up For What You Believe In
There is a lot of ways to interpret this one. Racing for charity. Seeing others break the
rules. Helping others you see in need.
16. Donate Your Toys To a Good Home
Triathlon is an expensive sport. Help however you can.
17. Toys Don’t Belong On a Shelf
Shoes don't belong in the closet. Bikes don't belong indoors. Swimsuits don't belong in
the bureau.
18. Don’t Hold a Grudge
Against yourself for a bad workout. Against the weather in the winter. Against anything.
19. You’re Braver Than You Think
In triathlon, stepping up to that finish line once is more than most will do in their lives.
Don't forget how big that is.
20. Be a Friend
Whether in practice or a race, whether passing or being passed, always say hi to that
person. It may be just the pick-me-up they need to keep going.
WHAT WE LEARNED FROM TOY STORY
After three tear-inducing films and a couple of hilarious shorts, the toys have a lot of adventures under their belts. That means they also have a lot of wisdom to impart, inspirational, practical, and otherwise.
1. You Can Have More Than One Favorite Toy
During playtime with Andy, there is a place for everyone: good guys, bad guys, barrels of monkeys, Mr. Evil Dr. Porkchop, and maybe every toy was Andy’s favorite in their own special way. Maybe playtime wouldn’t have been the same without everyone. Maybe we’re not just talking about toys, maybe we’re talking about real life. Maybe we’re talking about friends. Maybe things are getting real metaphorical. Better keep going…
2. Teamwork
Andy said it himself, this duo is “unstoppable.” The toys had to find their way back to Andy on three separate occasions, and all three times they made it because of teamwork. Remember, there’s no “i” in “toy.”
Andy said it himself, this duo is “unstoppable.” The toys had to find their way back to Andy on three separate occasions, and all three times they made it because of teamwork. Remember, there’s no “i” in “toy.”
3. Always Keep Extra Batteries Around
This one isn’t metaphorical. It really is wise to have extra batteries on-hand. (We recommend BNL batteries, of course.)
4. Be Flexible, Improvise
You can never know where the day will take you—maybe you’ll be at a cafe in Paris, or at a tea party with Mrs. Nesbitt. Just stay loose and be ready to go wherever playtime takes you.
You can never know where the day will take you—maybe you’ll be at a cafe in Paris, or at a tea party with Mrs. Nesbitt. Just stay loose and be ready to go wherever playtime takes you.
5. Play With Your Toys
No one can say for certain that our toys are alive and eager for our attention. But we also can’t say for certain that they AREN’T, right? So, better play it safe and get in some playtime so that your toys don’t get lonely.
6. Don’t Forget To Pack Your “Angry Eyes”
You don’t want to have to use them, but it’s nice to have them, just in case.
7. Never Underestimate The Little Guys
The green aliens weren’t the most complex or innovative toys. They didn’t advance many plotlines, and were always easily impressed, “oooOOooooo!” But, when all was said and done, these little guys came to the rescue with their steadfast dedication to their pals and mastery of crane operation.
8. Don’t Put The “To Keep” Toys In a Garbage Bag
This one is also extremely literal. Toys you want to keep go in a box that says “attic,” or a nice storage bin, or better yet, a shelf. Never a garbage bag, otherwise Toy Story 3 hijinks ensue.
9. No Toy Left Behind
Buddy system, guys. We arrived together, we leave together. Never leave a man behind. That’s what the line “you’ve got a friend in me” is all about.
10. Don’t Let Them Tell You That You Aren’t a Flying Toy
That’s a fancy way of saying don’t let anyone keep you from your dreams. True, Buzz was a toy, not a space ranger, but he definitely flew once he put his mind to it.
11. Play Nice
If the scare tactics the toys used on Sid didn’t convince you to treat your toys with respect, then listen to us now. Play nice—you don’t want to end up like this guy.
12. Enjoy Every Moment
Kids grow up. We know, we know: ouch. But, instead of missing the past or anticipating the future, just enjoy the present. Keep in mind what Woody proclaims in Toy Story 2, “I can’t stop Andy from growing up… but I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
13. Be Yourself
Mini Buzz was not fooling anyone in this Toy Story Toon (except for, perhaps, himself). Why be a mini version of someone else when you can be the full-sized version of yourself?
14. Clean Your Room
Otherwise, mom will! And she’ll put the wrong toys in the yard sale box, which might include Wheezy, and then Woody will have to save the day to rescue Wheezy, and risk being taken by an avid toy collector and sold to a children’s museum in Tokyo. SO… just remember to clean your room.
15. Stand Up For What You Believe In
We like our potatoes feisty. Look at this picture of Mrs. Potato Head. Just look at her! She, along with the rest of the toys, didn’t like the way Lotso was running Sunnyside, so they hatched a plan and did something about it. The results? A better playtime situation where everyone got to play, all because the toys stood up for what they believed in.
16. Donate Your Toys To a Good Home
Though it pained us all to watch Andy hand his toys over to Bonnie, we were also so very happy that they’d now get to play again! And with such a sweet and imaginative kid! So be sure that your toys find a safe and fun home because…
17. Toys Don’t Belong On a Shelf
In Toy Story 2, Woody came so close to going to the Konishi Toy Museum in Tokyo, he had us screaming at the movie screen “No! Don’t do it!” Toys aren’t meant for a life behind glass, which he luckily realized by the end of the film, just in time to make it back to Andy, yet again. Whew.
18. Don’t Hold a Grudge
Lotso was one bitter bear, but we’re not going to say that his grudge was totally unfounded. He had his little teddy bear heart broken, and that’s a fact. But, he got another shot at playtime at Sunnyside, which would have been great had he not adopted his “no owners means no heartbreak!” slogan. If you think about it, Lotso and Jessie are two peas in a pod, except Jessie kept her heart open to a new owner, and look how happy she was! (This one got a bit metaphorical too.)
19. You’re Braver Than You Think
At every turn, Rex is filled with anxiety or nervous for the unknown. But he also helped rescue Woody, crossed a busy street, survived playtime at Sunnyside, not to mention he really knows how to party. Remember, being brave doesn’t mean you aren’t scared, it means you’re scared but go for it anyway.
20. Be a Friend
No matter where the toys ended up–Sunnyside, the attic, or Bonnie’s house–they knew they’d be okay because they’d have each other. We’re even getting ourselves all choked-up at this point. The point is, if you’re a good friend, you’ll always have friends to back you up and be the Buzz to your Woody or the Bullseye to your Jessie.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
An Introduction of Sorts
Most of the people reading this probably follow me on Twitter, so it's not really an introduction, but at the same time it is because how much do you really know about the people you follow on Twitter? Anyways, I grew up in a small town in Massachusetts that has more trees than people. I was a competitive gymnast all my life with the opportunity to continue in college had injuries not gotten in the way. Between September 2009 and August 2011. I had 6 surgeries. Two knee arthroscopes (still have knee issues and need to run in a brace), an ankle arthroscope, an ankle reconstruction (that was a doozy) and two jaw reconstructions (upper and lower). Needless to say, that quickly put an end to my gymnastics career at the end of high school. So, I followed academics and chose the University of Southern California. I honestly could not be happier with that decision. I'm one of those cliche people (as much as I hate that) that is completely in love with their college. There, I chose to study astronautical engineering (yep, rocket science). My father is an engineer and I grew up listening to my grandfather talk about all the cool stuff he did on the Apollo program, so it just seemed right. Now I am a huge part of an undergraduate propulsion lab there that is poised to make USC the first university in space later this year!!!! While this blog will mostly follow my triathlon life, this part of me is just as important as that part, so I thought you ought to know. I also am sure from time to time that I will post about rockets so I promise it's not entirely random. After recovering from all the surgeries (for the most part at least), I got into triathlon with the USC tri team. I feel in love with it and haven't been able to stop. While all three sports have their nice qualities, I won't deny biking is my favorite. Running is definitely my weak sport due to my knee issues. However, recently running and I have come to a mutual understanding. I started my triathlon career with mostly olympics and sprints. Recently, I've come to adore racing the half-Ironman distance. My last race was Timberman 70.3 last August. Unfortunately, it was a week after I got hit by a car, so I ended up having to walk most of the half marathon. But alas, I finished! (Even if my time was absolutely disgusting). I also have a young adorable nephew who tagged along to the race (it was local for MA, only an hour north of where I grew up), and I decided to convert him to an Ironman one day (as seen below). Currently, I am living in the good old state of Alabama (never spent an extended period of time here before January). I was offered a long-term internship (I don't graduate until May 2014) in Huntsville working on a NASA rocket. My first race of this year was the Mercedes Half Marathon in Birmingham. While it was a bit chilly (23 F at the start), I maintain that it helped me because I couldn't feel my legs. It went surprisingly well. I had no knee pain and finished in a decent amount of time despite being sick for the three weeks prior. While I'm not going to call myself fast anytime soon or say running isn't my weakest of the three sports, I kind of ridiculously enjoyed the half marathon distance and will continue to sprinkle them in between other races. My next major race of the season is Ironman 70.3 New Orleans! It's a flat and fast course and I'm looking forward to it quite a bit (not just because it's a mini-vacation). Anyways, I'm always open to talk if you want to know more but I'm sure this is enough for all now. I will end this (and probably every post) with a saying that is near and dear to my, and every Trojan's, heart: Fight On!
Proof I finished!
My adorable nephew, Colton
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