That Wife Challenges

My Weddingbee friend Jenna -aka That Wife - hosts monthly challenges for food, photography and lifestyle. You read more about the challenges here. Every month has a them. This month the theme is "favorite." April is her birthday month too so she wanted to focus on favorites.

April Photo Challenge: Favorite Photo
This is my favorite picture from April. These are two seats at the new Yankees Stadium. I love heading to baseball games with my husband and baseball season means summer is just around the corner. As an added bonus, the new stadium as cup holders at every seat - even the nose-bleed section!

April Lifestyle Challenge: Favorite Gratis Activity
Participate in your favorite free activity and take a picture. I've got a lot of favorite activities and many of them are free. My favorite April activity? Riding my new bike! Luckily, for this challenge free is defined as “things you don’t spend money on to participate in right then,” so the cost of my new bike doesn't count!

April Food Challenge: Favorite Recipe
For the April Food Challenge on That Wife, you just have to make your favorite dish, take a picture, and share the recipe with the readers at That Wife.

There are many meals that I love to make but one of my favorites is "Sam's Tofu Bean Salad." We made this recipe up based on a cold bean salad that Sam had at Caribou Coffee in the Minneapolis Airport. We adapt the recipe based on what we have in the house at the time. Sometimes we use chick peas instead of black beans, sometimes we add different vegetables.

Sam's Tofu Bean Salad
1 package extra firm tofu
2 cans diced tomatoes (15 oz)
2 cans black beans (15 oz)
corn (2-3 ears of fresh corn is best)
red and green bell peppers
red onion
seasonings (salt, pepper, Italian blend, garlic, Tabasco sauce)

Chop of the veggies and the tofu and poor everything into a pot. Mix together and let it simmer for 20 - 40 minutes and add additional seasoning as desired. The longer you cook it the thicker it will get. When the taste and consistency is to your liking then you're done! I love this meal because it is super versatile. It can be eaten hot or cold, as an entree or a side dish. Plus, its full of protein, fiber and fresh veggies! As Rachel Ray would say, Yum-mo!

Multisport Volunteering

After Sam and I were bit by the triathlon bug we started researching races and clubs in our area. We came across New York Triathlon. They host lots of biathlons and triathlons in the NYC area - over 15 events each year! You can check out their schedule here. We discovered that NYT was hiring people for their Race Management Team. Essentially this is a glorified volunteer job where we show up to at least 6 races during the year and are paid $100 each for each event. We help manage the one-time volunteers and assist with everything from registration, transition setup/breakdown and security. We decided to join because we thought we might be able to meet some people, learn a thing or two and make some extra cash. Well, we've done two events so far and the experience has been even more valuable than I had imagined.

Our first race was the March Maddness Biathlon in Central Park on March 29th. This was the first time I have ever seen a multisport event. It was very eye opening and I learned more things watching this event than I can write. We were stationed in the transition area so we got a close-up view of what works and what doesn't work in transition. The weather was terrible - cold, rainy and windy - but we still had a pretty good time.

1. Know the course, the run exit/entrance and bike exit/entrance, and where your stuff is in transition. When you are pumped full of adrenaline it's easy to get distracted and start running the wrong way out of the transition area.

2. Don't forget to take off your helmet after the bike :)

3. Get a road bike - they are much faster than hybrid bikes and worth the extra $$.

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Our second event was last Sunday - the Bronx Biathlon at Orchard Beach. The weather was a 180 from our last event. Sunny and hot! Lessons learned during this event:



1. Know how to fix a flat and always have your repair kit with you. Several participants had to drop out of the race because they got flats and didn't have their repair kits.

2. Take your time mounting and dismounting your bike at the transition. We saw countless people try to get a flying start onto their bikes outside of the transition area and they ended up falling down, tripping or having their chains come off.

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If you are new to the sport I definitely recommend volunteering at a few local events before your first race. It helps you get an idea of what to expect and put a lot of fears to rest. Another great benefit, a lot of race groups (including New York Triathlon) will let you volunteer in exchange for a free race registration!

DIY Triathlon (or Harriman Hills from Hell)

Saturday was a major training day in our household. We decided to make a DIY triathlon and swim, bike and run in one day!

We woke up bright and early and I fueled with coffee, PB&J english muffins and water. We headed to the pool for the first workout. I swam 2 x 500's with about a minute break. I could have done a straight 1000 but I can't count that high... Sam swam 800 straight! A record for him!

After the pool we went home and ate an early lunch of salmon-wasabi sandwiches and cheese sticks. Then we packed the car and headed North to Harriman State Park for a bike ride. We had never been to Harriman but I read that it was a good place for biking. Google maps told us it was only a 45 minute drive, but in reality it took us over an hour to get there and we ended up paying a boatload in tolls. Our original plan was to do this 23 mile loop I found on Map My Ride:

When we arrived at the park we realized there wasn't really any where to park at the SW corner and the entire first 5 miles until the split was almost entirely up hill. So, we kept driving and decided to park where the route splits and just do the triangle shaped loop twice - about 14 miles each.


It was a HOT and sunny day. I wore 30 SPF sunscreen but Sam refused to wear any (more on this later). I had printed directions and a map so we looked it over and then hit the road. Sam was faster so we were quickly separated and I was on my own (fine with me!). Traffic was minimal and the road was it pretty good condition. There were a lot of other cyclists out on the roads. As you can see with the elevation grid, it was a very hilly course. I felt like I spent the entire ride either coasting down massive hills while riding the break (I don't like coasting over 25mph quite yet) or huffing it up major massive hills in the lowest gear possible and going 7mph. I think this is great training grounds for an experienced biker but I was feeling over my head! Remember - this is only my second ride!!

We had never been to Harriman before so we looked over the map and everything seemed pretty simple so we didn't bother to drive the course before hand. Well, me and my excellent sense of direction should have known better. When I reach the Northwest corner I was supposed to follow along the lake. There was a traffic circle there and I didn't see the road that when next to the lake so I ended up going down a separate road. Having no idea that I had missed the road I continued on my way. This road was even more steep than the last. I actually had to get off my bike and walk twice! Here it the route I actually took. I named it Harriman Hills from Hell.

Around mile 11 I decided I was only going to be able to do 1 loop (instead of the two). At mile 12 I started to realize I may have been off track. I only saw two other cyclists and the road was much more rough and narrow than the rest of the route. I decided I would keep going until I hit mile 14 since I knew that I should have been back the start by then. At 13.5 I crossed a bridge over the highway and I knew I had messed up. The worst part? I had to turn around and go back up and down the terrible hills I had just endured. Eventually I made it back to the lake and saw the road I should have taken - it was so obvious I don't know how I missed it. I was at 19 miles at this point and still had six left to go. Luckily, these second half of the original loop was much flatter! I learned some great lessons on this ride.

#1: Bring food/energy supplies. I didn't eat anything and only drank one bottle of water during the 2 hours and 30 minute ride. After I stopped I felt very sick and nauseous. It was 80+ degrees and I was energy depleted and dehydrated. Bad Krista!

#2: Drive new routes first. Biking is different from driving - duh. Even if you read directions and look at a map it all looks different from a bike. And, if you make a mistake (like I did) it can take a long time to correct (unlike driving where you just do a u-turn and you're back where you started in 2 minutes). The other advantage to driving is that you know what is coming next - you can anticipate large hills and you have a better idea of when the pain will end ;)

{Harriman State Park}

After the bike ride we headed back to the city. We stopped for sandwiches on the way home. I was having a hard time eating as I was so nauseous. I ate some Sun Chips and Gatorade and started to feel better. Eventually I ate half of my cheese/lettuce/tomato sandwich.

Once we got back to the city I was feeling much better but still exhausted. Sam was determined to do all three sports in the same day. I wasn't going to run but after seeing him all suited up I decided to tough it out and do a short run. I just did one loop around our local park - about 2 miles. I was slow and tired but I was proud of myself when I finished.

Only 3 weeks until the Pine Barrens Triathlon! I hope I'm ready!!

Training Schedule (4/18 - 4/24)

Training Schedule (4/18 - 4/24)

Saturday April 18th
My best friend and her boyfriend were visiting from MN. We spent the morning walking through Central Park and then went to a Yankees game at the new Yankees Stadium. The weather was gorgeous but the game was not. The Yankees lost 22-4. Ouch!!

Sunday April 19th
More resting and exploring. We checked out the Museum of Natural History and headed to the west village for the best pizza in NYC.

Monday April 20th (My Birthday!)
30 minutes on stationary bike (~7.2 miles)

Tuesday April 21st
20 minutes weights
Outdoor Run @ Astoria Park: 4.2 miles (time: ?? - forgot watch again)

Wednesday April 22nd
20 minutes weights
30 minutes on stationary bike (~7.2 miles; resistance 7/10)

Thursday April 23rd
55 minute bike in Central Park (14 miles)
Second attempt on the bike ride. Everything went super smoothly! Read more here.

Friday, April 24th
Rest!

Take Two

Yesterday was a “take two” for me. I spent my morning attempting two previously failed goals. My first “take two” was a bike ride in Central Park. After the debacle of last week I was pretty nervous. I even had nightmares about getting to the park and having a broken bike again. Luckily my fears were unfounded. I completed two loops of the park (plus a little extra) for a total of 14 miles in 55 minutes (average 15.2 mph). Biking is so much more fun when your bike works! (who knew?!) I felt so much more confident after a successful bike ride! I’m still a little nervous about biking the 24 miles for the Pine Barrens triathlon – only 3 weeks to go – but I’m feeling better about it now that I’ve gotten a real ride in. Now, I just have to figure out how to drink while I’m on the bike…

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Next, I headed to the New York Blood Center in the Met Life Building (donating blood is on my 101 in 1001 list). I tried to donate last month but my hemoglobin levels were too low due to an iron deficiency. The cut off is 12.5 g/dL and mine was 12.0 g/dL. I’ve been taking iron supplements and working on combining my food better to increase iron absorption. I was hopeful that it had improved enough. Well… it did! My hemoglobin level was 12.9 g/dL and I was eligible to donate. I’ve heard horror stories from people about blood donations but I couldn’t believe how well it went! The staff was awesome and they were so kind and helpful. They elevated my legs to reduce the chance of dizziness and brought me juice when I was done to drink before getting up. The actual donation lasted only 5 minutes. They told me it usually takes 6 to 8 but since I have very good circulation that mine was extra fast! The whole appointment lasted about 45 minutes from checking in, testing my iron, donation and recovery. I’ve already scheduled my next visit for June! Have you given blood before? If you are eligible you should definitely consider it. You can find your local blood donation center at http://www.givelife.org/.

Tomorrow is a big training day – we are going for a light swim in the morning, a long bike at Harriman State Park and maybe even a short run in the afternoon!

Quarter Century (or happy birthday to me!)

Today is my 25th birthday!

April 20, 1984

Last year was filled with many wonderful moments and memories. I hope that 25 is even better.

I'll be celebrating tonight at Candle 79 - a vegetarian restaurant on the Upper East Side. My best friend and her boyfriend are visiting from Minnesota so they will be joining us for dinner tonight. What more could a girl ask for?

Training Schedule (4/11 - 4/17)

Training Schedule (4/11 - 4/17)

Saturday April 11th
Scotland Homecoming 10K Run in Central Park - 59 minutes and 38 seconds

Read all about it here and see pictures here.

Sunday April 12th
Feeling out the new bikes with a spin (and fall) around neighborhood.

Monday April 13th
30 minutes on stationary bike (~7.2 miles)

Tuesday April 14th
20 minutes weights
Outdoor Run @ Astoria Park: 4.2 miles (43:30)

Wednesday April 15th
20 minutes weights
30 minutes on stationary bike (~7.2 miles; resistance 5/10)

Thursday April 16th
Bike "Ride" from Hell
60 minutes swim (2300 meters; focus on bilateral breathing)

Friday, April 17th
Outdoor Run @ Astoria Park: 3.5 miles; 37 minutes)

It's a New Day (and Scotland 10K Photos)

Today is a new day. And while I'm still a little pissed about my bike situation, I'm trying to move on. We went to the pool last night and somehow we ended up in the fastest Medium lane ever. Usually we swim in the fast lanes but they were full. While we were waiting a new lane opened up (previously reserved for a swim class) so even though it was meant for medium speed swimmers we decided to jump in. And guess what?! We had the lane to ourselves for the first 20 minutes. Then a group of 3 teenage siblings jumped in. And they were the similar in speeds to us and very respectful (waiting for people to do turns, letting you pass, etc.). It was awesome.

Anyhow, for my workout last night I decided to focus on bilateral breathing. I've always been a single side breather (left) and find it incredibly difficult to breath on my right. When I breath on my right I feel my entire body go out of whack and I get dizzy and nauseous. I guess this is probably how new swimmers feel when they are trying to learn to breath in general. It sucks.

This has never been that big of a deal but with triathlon swimming I think it is going to be important to have the option to breath on the right or the left. Surprisingly the swim actually went well and I as able to keep up the bilateral breathing for 3 out of 4 500's. In my last set I was getting tired and it was much harder to make myself breath on the right. I had a bit of a headache when it was over and my neck was a bit sore, but all-in-all I'm pretty happy with how it went. Now I need to stay committed to it so I can make it a habit!

Typically Friday's are my rest day, but my best friend is flying into town tonight so I don't think I will be squeezing any workouts in over the weekend. I really, really didn't want to get up and run this morning - I'm morally opposed to working out on Fridays - but I did. And I'm glad I did. I can't say that the minute I started running I was glad I was out there. In fact, I felt pretty sluggish on the run. The more important part was mental - you might say I'm back on the proverbial horse :)

Just for fun, here are some pics from the Scotland 10K last Saturday.

Here I am at the start of the race - I just crossed the start line and took off my poncho:


I tossed the poncho towards a garbage can to free up my arms. Look how much they are moving across my body?! Oops!

Here's Sam crossing the finish (he's trying to get his watch out to check his time):

Here I am reaching the finish. See all those flying ponchos?! Can you imagine the amount of drag that added to their runs? Plus, they were probably wet anyway between leaking rain and sweat!

Here I am after the finish. It looks like I'm giving someone an evil death eye... I don't really know what I was thinking in this picture...

Unlike last Saturday, it's supposed to be 75 and sunny tomorrow! Enjoy your weekend!

Wallowing in self-pity...

Remember how I was just saying how wonderful my new bike was? How excited I was to hit Central Park this morning for a great ride? Well, we got up at 5am loaded our bikes onto the car and headed into Manhattan. It was a gorgeous morning, a beautiful sunrise and not too cold. I was really looking forward to the ride. My plan was to complete 2 loops of the park for a total of 12 miles. About a half mile into my ride I was shifting gears and the bike started to make some funny noises. I tried shifting again but my pedals were stuck and wouldn't move forward. I was going down a long hill so I coasted the rest of the way down and then hoped off my bike to see what the problem was. Well considering I don't know diddly about bikes, I didn't even know what I was looking at. It appeared the chain had come off the chainset. I tried to adjust and jump back on but my pedals were still stuck. After staring at my bike for about 5 minutes I finally got up the nerve to wave down another cyclist to see if he could help. A very nice man and woman stopped to help. They got my bike chain untwisted but unfortunately the chain had bent so it wouldn't stay on the chainset. The man told me I might be able to ride it if I kept it in the higher gears but that I should probably just wait until I got a new chain. I was feeling stubborn and determined so I decided to try to keep riding. I'm not a quitter!

Well, as soon as I got back on the bike it started shifting on its own and very quickly I realized that I wasn't going to be biking anywhere else. I got off my bike, turned it around and started to cry while I walked back to the car. I wasn't sad - I was pissed. I desperately wanted to get a ride in and now I had wasted my morning, my bike was broken and I didn't get a workout. Shortly after I started walking Sam passed me after finishing his first loop. He stopped to check on me but once we realized there was nothing that he could do I told him to finish is ride and meet me at the car - no point in ruining both of our mornings.

While hobbling back to the car (bike shoes are not meant for walking) I kept being passed by female running pairs. All these women running together and enjoying their morning. This just compacted my bad mood and made me miss having friends. After almost a year and a half in the city I still haven't made any close friends. Usually I try not to wine like this but right now I'm wallowing in self pity. I've decided to let myself wallow until I get to work and then I'll move on. We will head to the pool tonight and I'll run tomorrow morning. I'll bring my bike to the shop and get the chain fixed and the gears adjusted. I'll be fine. But right now.... I'm wallowing.

Bike Meets Pavement

We were invited to Sam's families home for Easter lunch. I made Miniature Easter Basket Cupcake that I saw on Bakerella. I was a little worried about coming off as a "silly Midwestern girl" to Sam's family, but the cupcakes were a big hit. As Sam said, "Everyone's a kid on Easter!" I saved a few cupcakes for CJ at the bike shop and he loved them too! Success!

After a wonderful Easter lunch we headed to Metro Bikes to pick up our new babies - Trek 1.2 and 1.5 :) Here's my new bike! Isn't it beautiful!?



By the time we got home it was after 5 and we were losing sunlight. Plus, it was cold and windy! We couldn't wait to get our bikes out on the road so we decided to head to the local park to practice with the new clipless pedals. If you know me you probably know I that everything makes me nervous and biking is no exception. I was nervous about the new handle bars, riding outside, dodging cars and using new brakes/shifters. But none of these compared to how nervous I was about using clipless pedals. Not sure what clipless pedals are? Neither was I until about 2 weeks ago. Essentially you have special cycle shoes that have cleat attached to the sole. Special pedals are attached to the bike that match the cleat on the shoe. You are then able to attach and detach your shoe to your pedals just by moving your ankle (instead of reaching down). The advantage to this system is that you can go faster and use more muscles because instead of just "pushing down/forward" you can also "pull up/back" on the pedal. If that doesn't make sense read this - it's very helpful!

As you can imagine, having your feet attached to the pedals on a bike is a little scary because if you have to stop you need to quickly detach your shoe so you can set it on the ground to support you, otherwise you just fall over. Which is exactly what happened to me. We were in the parking lot of the park and I was attempting to stop the bike. I detached my right foot from the pedal. When the bike came to a stop I lost my balance before I could get my right foot down and leaned to the left. Since my left foot was still attached I just fell over with the bike on top. I now have a pretty bruise on my left leg. Battle wounds! Sam actually fell over too, but his fall happened when he was trying to start moving. He clipped in one shoe but he didn't get enough momentum before he attached his other shoe so he fell over. This video captures exactly what it looks like when you fall over on your bike because of clipless pedals:

Anyhow, after we spent 20 minutes biking around the parking lot we felt confident enough to hit the road. Okay - that is sort of a lie. Sam was confident and I was scared shitless. He wanted to go on the road but I was afraid of traffic, car doors, intersections and stopping. I told him to go without me. When he actually did I changed my mind and went biking after him "Wait for me! I'm coming." So... we went for a 20 minute bike in our neighborhood and other than a close encounter with a opening car door we made it home without accident or injury.

Thursday morning we are heading to Central Park for our first real ride!

Homecoming Scotland: Parade and 10K

It was Homecoming Scotland week in NYC. You might say I'm Scottish by marriage so we celebrated with the Tartan Parade last weekend and a 10K race this weekend.

We headed to the tartan parade on a cold and windy Saturday morning. I was a bit nervous about the idea of going to a kilt parade on such a windy day but luckily everything stayed under wraps. Sam took the opportunity to pull out his kilt for the first time since our wedding. Doesn't he look cute?!

They were giving out grab bags along the parade route. We got hats, ponchos and Scotland flags. It was cold so I took advantage of the hat!

A small showing for the Campbell clan appeared in the parade.

Now that is a big log! How do you think they got that into the city?

This Saturday we ran our first race of the season, the Scotland 10K in Central Park. We woke up to overcast skies and air was damp and chilly. Just when we were leaving the house the rain started. When we started the race at 10am it was in the low 40's and still raining. I was cold and wet but still looking forward to the race.

My goal was to finish in under 1 hour. The actual distance is 6.2 miles so this is slightly faster than a 10 minute mile. I know this is pretty slow for most runners, but this is one of the longer distances I have done (okay - the longest) so I was just hoping to maintain my pace. Plus, it was only my 5th outdoor run of the season and I wasn't sure how my body would handle it. I felt pretty good during the race. Over 7600 people finished the race which made for a crowded course. We spread out a little in the first mile but I was weaving in and out of people for the entire race. It was annoying at times but it was also entertaining to watch all the people and kept me focused on moving forward and getting ahead. Despite the rain and the crowded course I still met my goal! I was thrilled to cross the finish at 59:38. The last .2 miles of the course were pretty crowded as people slowed to wave to family and friends so I think I probably could have finished about 30 seconds faster if there were less crowds. Regardless I just happy to clock in under an hour. I didn't take any pictures because of the rain (bad blogger) but I did find these on Flickr:

There is a video on the NYRR website where you can see how rainy and crowded it was: http://www.nyrr.org/resources/video/local/2009/scotland.asp

Up next, our new bikes and my first ride with clipless pedals...

Spring Cleaning: Recycle Your Sneakers

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If you're an athlete - or a pack rat - you've probably got several pairs of old sneakers hiding in the back of your closet. Well spring is here and it's out with the old and in with the new.

FitSugar posted three great ways to recycle your sneakers (or tennies as I call them - damn those Midwestern roots). If your shoes are gently worn you can donate to Souls for Shoes or One World Running:

Soles 4 Souls' tag line is "Saving the world — one pair at a time." This organization takes your tired, but "gently worn," sneakers and finds needy feet to fill your old shoes. You can organize a shoe drive at your office or school or just donate your shoes at a local drop-off center. Learn more about donating here.

One World Running has been serving runners around the world since 1986. Through
collection programs, they are able to provide shoes for runners to many
countries including Cuba, Nepal, and Mali. Check here for drop-off locations.

If your cheap like me and like to wear your shoes until they are beyond repair, you can donate to Nike Reuse a Shoe.

Nike Reuse a Shoe accepts sneakers of all brands that are beyond
wear. turns those old shoes into a recycled product known as Nike Grind. Once
your recycled shoes are reformulated into Nike Grind, they are used to make
tracks, indoor basketball courts, fields, and playgrounds. Just drop off your
retired sneakers at any Nike store, or check here for locations.

Training Schedule (4/4 - 4/10)

Training Schedule (4/4 - 4/10)

Saturday April 4th

Stationary Bike (high seat): 60 minutes - 14 miles
Outdoor Run: 4.2 miles 43:30

I'm starting to get nervous for our May triathlon. The bike/run is what scares me most. We had plans for Saturday so we cut the weightlifting and just focused on cardio. First it was 60 minutes on the stationary bike. My feet started to fall asleep near the end but overall it felt good. Then I ate an apple and some almonds and switched to running clothes. It was cold and windy! Not good running weather. Despite the 60 minute bike session and the wind, I still ran the 4.2 mile loop a minute and 30 seconds faster than Thursday!

Sunday April 5th
Swim: 3800 meters (about 80 minutes)

200 meter warm up
6 x 500 (~9:15 each)
600 meter cool down

We headed to the pool on Sunday night so we could take advantage of the 50 meter length. Usually the pool is 25 meters but on Sunday nights they combine the three pools and convert it to a 50 meter pool. It's much harder but great for training for an open water swim.

Monday April 6th
30 minutes on stationary bike (~7.2 miles)

Tuesday April 7th
20 minutes weights
Indoor Treadmill Run: 5 minute intervals for a total of 35 minutes: 5.5mph/6.0/6.5/7.0/6.5/6.0

Wednesday April 8th
60 minutes on stationary bike (~14 miles)

Thursday April 9th
20 minute weights
Outdoor Run @ Astoria Park: 4.2 miles (time unknown)

I forgot my watch for my run so I have no idea what my time was. Oops! We planned to make it to the pool on Thursday night but ended up accepting a last minute invitation for Mexican food with our friends visiting from China. It was yummy and more fun than swimming in a crowded pool!

Friday, April 10th
Probably rest and relax (but we head to the pool tonight to make up for skipping Thursday)

My new Trek!

We went to Metro Bicycles on the Upper East Side (88th and Lex) yesterday to put deposits on our new bikes. We both lucked out and were able to purchase the bike we wanted in last years model which saved an extra $100 each! We worked with the Assistant Manager, CJ, and he was great! We stopped in last week and knew he was the right person to work with. He was honest and open about the bikes and is a cyclist himself (only working at the bike shop because he loves bikes!). If you're looking for a bike in NYC I highly recommend you visit CJ at Metro Bicycles!

I'm now the proud owner of 1/3 of a 2008 Trek 1.2 (it's on layaway until Sunday)! You can read all the specs here on the Trek website. It's not a women's specific bike, but it still felt great and seemed to fit me well. There are a couple of minor differences between the men and women's bikes. The women's bikes have a narrower handle bars, a slightly different saddle (seat) and typically it is a shorter distance from the saddle to the handlebar (for an easier reach). If I was buying a 2009 model I would probably have picked the women's specific bike but I didn't think the difference was the worth the extra $100. Plus, the women's bikes always come in cutesy colors like magenta and creamsicle. My new bike is black and red - looks hard core huh?!


If you are thinking of buying a road bike and would like help picking between a man and women's bike, I recommend this article from Bicycling. It is a great explanation of the differences between a men/unisex bike and a women's specific bike.

We'll be paying the balance and picking up our new bikes on Sunday. I can't wait!

Training Schedule (3/28 - 4/3)

Well the month of March was pretty crazy and I promise that we were training, but I kept forgetting to post. Since we moved up our race schedule we are trying to take our training to a new level. Here's the schedule from last week:

Training Schedule (3/28 - 4/3)

Saturday March 28th
Stationary Bike (high seat): 30 minutes - 7 miles at resistance 6/8

Friday was Sam's birthday so we were out late celebrating. I felt pretty rough on Saturday but I managed to drag my butt to the gym for 30 minutes on the stationary bike. Something is better than nothing!

Sunday March 29th
Swim: 50 minutes - 2000 meters

I can't remember the specifics of the workout, but we took it easy (recovering from more birthday celebrations!).

Monday March 30th
Stationary Bike - 30 minutes / ~ 7 miles

Tuesday March 31st
Weight Lifting: 20 minutes
Treadmill Run - 37 minutes at 6.0 mph (3.7 miles)

Wednesday April 1st
Stationary Bike - 45 minutes / ~ 10.5 miles

Thursday April 2nd
Weight Lifting - 20 minutes
Outdoor Run - 4.2 miles @ 45:11 minutes.
Swimming (PM) - 60 minutes / 2700 meters
250 meter warm up; 3 x 750 with 2 minute rest (each set around 13:45); 200 meter cool down

The outdoor run was our local loop around Astoria park. This was the first time I had hit the park in the morning and slightly longer than my last run (~.75 miles further). It was a cool/misty morning and perfect for running!

Friday, April 3rd
Rest and Relax!

101 in 1001: Day 44

I've been working on my 101 in 1001 list. I've completed 5 items and made progress on another 6!

Start Date: February 17, 2009
End Date: November 15, 2011

Completed

#2. Shop at farmer’s market at least once a month for four months (4.1.09)
You might be wondering how I completed this so early in the season. Well, I joined the Harvest Astoria CSA. A CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) is a way for the food buying public to create a relationship with a farm and to receive a weekly basket of produce. Starting in June, we will get fresh vegetables weekly from a farm Norwich Meadows Farm in upstate New York. The program lasts for 22 weeks and provides weekly fresh vegetables. I've also signed up for the biweekly fruit share so we can get fruits every other week. I'm super excited! This is even better than going to the farmer's market. I'll get locally grown foods on a weekly basis! To read more about CSA's or find one in your area visit the Local Harvest website.

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#8. Bake bread (from 100% scratch) (4.1.09)
I baked a yummy loaf of Whole Wheat Beer Bread. The crust was a little too crunchy but the inside was soft and chewy. I borrowed the recipe from Happy Herbivore. This was a simple recipe that only required 5 ingredients and didn't require kneading or rising. I definitely want to keep baking bread and hopefully I can progress to something a little more complex!

#19. Get a promotion (3.23.09)
On March 23rd I was promoted from a clinical trials specialist to a call center coordinator. I'm still working with patients on the phone, but taking added responsibility for organizing the day to day operations. I'm super excited and looking forward to the new challenges!

#43. Read two books focused on historical events in USA (1/2)
I read "Under the Banner of Heaven." It was pretty fucked up. Most people I know have liked it but I personally felt it was a bit confusing and really didn't shed enough light on the differences between main stream Mormonism and Fundamentalist Mormons.

#59. See a Broadway musical (3.17.09)
On March 17th a coworker and I went to see August: Osage County on Broadway. She is part of a discount club and got us tickets for $33! What a steal! The play was awesome, but really depressing. Cancer, suicide, depression, alcohol/drug addiction, divorce, infidelity, you name it. I highly recommend it but not the best choice if you are looking for something with a happy ending.

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In Progress

#10. Drink 20 new types of beer (5 of 20)

3) Six Point ~ Sweet Action (Ale) - I tried this at Cafe Katja for our friends 30th birthday party. It was fresh at tasty. I would definitely try this one again. A-

4) Abita Amber - I tried this at Sam's birthday dinner at Delta Grill. It was pretty good but not a favorite. A little too rich for my taste buds. I give it a B-

5) Restoration Ale - Another Abita Brew from Sam's birthday dinner. This ale
was lighter than the Amber and had smooth and refreshing flavor. Plus, proceeds from restoration ale go to support the rebuilding of New Orleans after Katrina! A+

#20. Have engagement ring insured

I went to the jeweler in Connecticut and got the appraisal documents. Now I need to find a company to work with. Any suggestions?

#21. Complete a Sprint distance triathlon

Registered for sprint triathlon for May 16, 2009.

#22. Complete an Olympic distance triathlon

Registered for olympic triathlon for July 26, 2009.

#52. Visit three new baseball stadiums (0/3)

We bought our tickets for the New Yankee's Stadium. We'll be seeing our first game there on April 18th!

#84. Donate blood three times (0/3)

I tried to donate blood for the first time on March 26th. But my iron level was too low so they turned me away. I've started taking iron supplements and trying to increase my combo of iron + vitamin C foods to increase my absorption. I'll try again in a few weeks!

The Mindbody Prescription: Healing the Body, Healing the Pain

 

I've been wanting to write about this topic since the start of my blog, but it felt so overwhelming. Recently a friend told me she plans to have surgery for back pain and it prompted me to finally write about my experience with back pain.

In the fall of 2007 I started having pain in my hips. I had four months of physical therapy to treat weak hip flexors. I started to feel better and slowly returned to physical activity. The pain came rushing back. In spring 2008 I visited an orthopedic specialist and was diagnosed with a herniated disk. He prescribed anti-inflammatories. I had allergic reactions, switched meds, more side-effects and still no relief. He ordered and MRI which confirmed a herniated disk at my L5/S1 and bulging disk at my L4/L5. I had two epidural steroid injections, acupuncture and more physical therapy. I bought books about back exercises, special back pillows, and ice packs. I was taking pain killers every day to function. Nothing helped and I truly thought I would need surgery.

Then one of my in-law's told me about tension myositis syndrome and Dr. John Sarno's books. I was skeptical at first but I knew I had nothing to loose. The general concept is that back pain is caused by a disorder called tension myositis syndrome (TMS). This is a real disorder and causes real pain, but it is the result of repressed rage and emotions. The basic idea is that the brain creates these physical symptoms to distract us from dealing with the emotions. All of your energy and thoughts are focused on the pain and therefore one can avoid the emotions. It might sound strange at first, but it really does make sense. Dr. Sarno includes childhood issues, personality traits and external pressures as the emotions that can contribute to the TMS. Childhood issues were not something that were a big contributor for me, but the personality traits (perfectionist, goodist, pleaser, overachiever) and life pressures (aging, mortality, work, family, money). The personality traits fit me perfectly and I had more than enough life pressures. During this time I got engaged, graduated from college, moved to a new city, started a new job (which I hated), and planned a wedding.

The best part is that you don't have to eliminate these pressures or reduce the stress in order to make the pain go away. You simply have to acknowledge it and work at acknowledging feelings because if you let your conscious mind deal with them (instead of suppressing them) your body wont produce the pain to distract you. Get it? Dr. Sarno's book, The Mindbody Prescription, is a must read for anybody experiencing back pain. The book expertly explains the syndrome, the theories and the historical evidence to support TMS.

For those of you who have back pain, you might be thinking "If my scan shows I have a herniated disk, than I obviously have an injury and therefore pain." But the truth is 30-50% of people would show disk herniation regardless of pain symptoms. Further, many people describe that their pain moves, but if your pain moved than it couldn't be from a disk herniation because that should be pinching the same nerve and causing pain in the exact same place all time. It wouldn't move.

After I read the book and opened my mind that this was possibility I instantly started to feel better. I would say that I am 85% better now. I am even training for a triathlon for May! Last summer I could barely walk/sit and couldn't function without prescription pain killers. Now I'm running, biking and swimming! I still get pain on occasion but now I know what it is and it usually goes away quickly. I still get nervous when I have pains and aches; my injury was such a major part of life for months and I was accustomed to not pushing myself to avoid injury. I think that overcoming this mindset will be one of my biggest challenges when it comes to triathlon training, but I'm up for the challenge. I can't wait to write letters to my many back doctors who told me I could never run again after I finish my first triathlon.

Please, if you or anybody you know is experiencing back pain, please get this book and really consider the idea of the mindbody connection. If anyone is interested I have an 8 page summary of TMS (given to me by Dr. Sarno at my first appointment with him) Just comment below and I will happily email it to you.

Back Pain Research

Back Pain Eludes Perfect Solutions
May 13, 2008, The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/13/health/13back.html?scp=8&sq=%22back+pain%22&st=nyt

Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Lumbar Spine in People without Back Pain
New England Journal of Medicine, July 1994; http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/331/2/69

This study found that when doctor's examined the MRI scans of 98 people without back pain, 52% where found to at least have a bulging disk. The results, bulging disks and back pain could be purely coincidental

Resources on TMS

Seligman Medical Institute
http://www.smi-mindbodyresearch.org/

An Expert Interview With Dr. John Sarno
June 2004; http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/478840

Rachel's RSI homage to Dr. John Sarno
http://podolsky.everybody.org/rsi/