Feeling better

Hello followers- I am once again happy to report survival coupled with feeling better. Yesterday was a long workout with 110k on the bike followed by a 5k run.

My goals of eating and drinking on the bike were realized with just a minor incident which could have easily resulted in killing Mr. P. Rather embarassing-I thought I had put my water bottle securely in it's cage-but when I let go-it went flying at a gazillion miles per hour right towards Mr. P. Fortunately he was able to dodge this water bottle bullet and then proceeded to tell me that when he was on the Ironman course, he had to dodge water bottles on a regular basis. OMG I am thinking to myself-it never even occured to me that I might have to do this! Strange because when running a race, people chuck all sorts of things on the ground-don't know why I didn't think biking was the same.

This experience also resulted in one of my worst fears coming true-yup-I got a flat tire. It was the strangest experience, because, again for some reason, I thought that if you got a flat, you would loose control and veer to your right or left or flip off, or some unfortunate experience. In this case, my bike just started making a very very strange noise. When I asked Mr. P about this, he said Donna you got yourself a flat and now your going to change it.

So there I sat at the side of a highway in the middle of nowhere, changing my tire. I was so greatful the Mr. P and his wife were with me as I know firsthand, I would not have been able to do it alone. Good thing I will get in some more practice with Mr. C this week at the bike shop!

The other major thing I learned about the long ride, was the importance of heart rate and staying in an endurance zone so you don't burn out your legs. Even though I went a greater distance and ran further than in the duathalons, I felt way better. I know it sounds strange, but its true.

Today, though, was the icing on the cake. I met Mr. P and Mrs. P this morning for my second open water swim (OWS). The water was bleepin cold and the outdoor air temp was 14. Mrs. P was so kind and shared her thermos of hot water with me. Just so we are clear, the hot water was not for drinking, but for pouring down our wetsuits prior to taking the very cold plunge.

I remembered to breathe, and being in the company of Mr and Mrs. P was very reassuring to say the least. The swim went sooooooooooooooooo much better, and I actually was able to relax and find a rythm. My ability to site in the water was somewhat improved, although clearly an area I will need to work on.

The one thing that did freak me out was when Mr. P was grabbing at my arms and legs. Perhaps I should explain as that did not sound right. Apparently in the mass start of the swim everyone is jockeying for position. As a result, people kick, grab, scratch, push-you name it. Mr. P was trying to simulate this so that next week when this happens, I will not panic. So today I did panic-but at least it was controlled panic, and even though I reverted to my back for a second to compose, I quickly got back on my stomach and started to swim again.

At the end of the day, I must say I feel so much better-I know I have a lot of work still ahead, but at least today I am way more positive. Now if only I can get in a few more OWS this week!