My Husband's 2nd Addiction!

WARNING- non-sports related post- JUST FOR FUN!

So I already posted about my husband's addiction to all things caloric, but I realized that he also has other addictions.  I think he just has a personality that keeps him focused on a few things he really loves.  THANKFULLY, none of his addictions are drug, alcohol, or abuse related.  If you or anyone you know is in one of those situations, my heart goes out to you.  I've seen first hand how that can destroy relationships and families!  Please seek help.

So, PLEASE know that while I make fun of Hubby for his quirks, I realize that it could be much worse.

On with the post-

Yesterday, I came home to find this waiting by the garage:

Which would be absolutely great if there were running shoes, bike parts, or a wetsuit in one of them.  Alas, I knew I hadn't ordered anything.  

My next step was to text hubby this picture with the following, "Really?  I think your ebay addiction has gotten a little out of hand, don't you?"

To which he replied, "Maybe.... I love you!"

You see, my husband has found the ebay app on his phone and he is on it ALL THE TIME.  Like, so much, that I feel like he is having an affair with ebay.  While other women are suspicious of their man's texting time on their phone, I know my hubby is just ebaying.  

My husband loves all things comic related.  When we bought our house, the room that "sold" him was a bed room with built in shelves that he deemed HIS comic room.  When baby #3 surprised us, he decided it was much better to have the two girls share a room with a bunk bed than for him to give up his comic room.  We have a 4 bedroom house and our girls share a room!  While most people would think that is selfish, please know that my girls WANTED to share a room- I fully expect that to change when they are teens.  Look out comic books!  

So, all in good fun- here is his comic room:

Shelves of action figures

the built in shelves of boxed figures, swords, and dragons

a magazine rack (notice the black out curtains in the back that keep the sun from fading the comics)

wall shelves (IKEA!) that we put up for his special comics

a glass case of his action figures

And while I spend a decent amount of money on my hobby of triathlons and running....  I can honestly say that I think his addictive personality wins out!  

Anyone else have a spouse who collects something and it seems to get out of hand?  Or do you??

Comments are LOVED!

Sylvania Women's Triathlon Race Recap

Today was the Sylvania Women's Triathlon hosted by Elite Endeavors and Team Toledo.   A week ago I wasn't even sure I'd be able to participate.  I was so excited to finally know for sure Friday when I did my first run in 3 weeks!

4 friends from work were convinced to join me for this one.  None of them had done a triathlon before, but they are all very fit and into exercise so I knew they'd be ok.  We even did a few self-arranged mini triathlons for practice.

We all arrived shortly after 6am and started setting up in transition.

My bike and stuff

Transition

We all went down to the quarry where the swim was to be staged and took a look around.  You can see  the orange buoys way out on the right.  The first one is a little more than 1/2 way (I think) and then the far one is where we turned left.  The yellow one on the left side is the far corner where we turned around to come back.  You can't see the final yellow buoy that was just to the left of the picture around the corner.  We then exited the water to the left of the last orange buoy you see near the bottom left corner of the picture.

Here is a picture of where we entered the water from the steps.  There were a few steps we had to go down from our staging area where we all lined up based on how fast we thought we were.  I think I was maybe 10th or so in the water, as we were started individually with 4 seconds between everyone.  Coming back in we had to go up 37 steps to the top of the quarry to get to the transition.  The steps were included in our swim time.  

Just before we went to be staged for the swim, our friends came to cheer us on and we gave them last minute instructions for where they could see us.  

The event started promptly at 7:30am and we were off.  I felt my swim was slower than I had planned, but I felt good and was only passed by 2 people and I passed two other people.  The sun was bright on the way out, but it was only in my eyes for a bit as the trees shaded most of it.  The water was 80 degrees and felt great- which was good because for a July day it was only 52 degrees out and the air was COLD!

My swim was the fastest for my age group of 18 people. 

T1 was pretty slow for me, but I took some extra time to make sure my orthotics were in place in my bike shoes.  

I was off on the bike and the turns make it hard to judge how the winds would be blowing.  I knew I was doing well and most of the time I was biking at 15-18mph.  I knew my average would be decent.  

The bike course was flat and mostly smooth.  The volunteers were great and were cheering the whole way.  

My bike time was 5th in my age group...not bad considering I haven't been riding much in 3 weeks!

T2 was also pretty slow for me since I needed to change shoes and drink something since I forgot my bike bottle and couldn't drink on the bike.  I need to work on my transitions.

The run course was flat and mostly on a paved path.  There were NO volunteers on the run except a HS CC handing out water.  They were not really sure how to handle this job I don't think.  I reached for a water and they were talking to each other and the guy holding the water turned to talk to his friend and the water pulled away from me.  I had to stop to get the water from him since he wasn't really paying attention.  The course wasn't marked well other than the arrows on the ground which were some what confusing at the point where you go out into the park and then come back on to the trail since there were arrows pointing in several directions there!  Every where else was ok though.  

My run was much like other runs after biking.  My legs felt like bricks and I had a hard time moving at first.  After about 2 miles, I was good and moving along at my normal pace.  I believe I had another PR on my 5K time!  Unfortunately my run was 13th out of 18 in my age group.  My running is obviously where I need to put more work in since it's what caused me to finish 6th out of 18- one place out of the awards!  

Again, I feel good about this finish because I haven't been able to train well in awhile.  I put in a good race for me.  I don't have my own finish photo yet, but here is one of a friend finishing.  

She did not care of the swimming part, but she still did great!

A friend of ours may or may not have brought some adult drinks for the finishers of our group!

What an awesome friend right?!

As I said, I finished 6th by about a minute to the person in 5th.  The rest of our group did such a great job.  One friend even got 1st place in the 60-64 age group.  Woooo Hooo!!!

After I got home, I saw this posted on facebook and thought it couldn't have been more perfect for us, as it wasn't about the times or who placed 1st among us... but rather that we did it together.   

Here we are with medals I bought for all of us...since the race didn't give medals out.  :)  

Aren't we cute!

The best part of this whole experience was that I inspired them to try a triathlon and I heard most of them say that they loved it and wanted to do another one.  I'm so proud of all of them and I hope they join me for more.  

Morton's Neuroma

So after all of the doctor's appointments and test, I've finally been told that it is a Morton's Neuroma.  Basically it's a bundle of nerves between my 4th and 5th metatarsal that have been pinched and caused an inflammation.  The doctor was great and found the sweet spot quickly.  She had me feel it- I would have never realized the pain was actually from there until I touched it!  It was like  big tumor between the bones.

I was given a cortisone shot and then some steroid pills to take.

I was also told that I would need orthotics to keep it from happening all over again.  I was given temporary inserts that would help me while I heal.

Cute right?

The BEST news was that after all of this time, I was told that as long as the steroids took care of the pain that I could try running TOMORROW!  I'm somewhat frustrated that if that's all it took, I could have taken care of it weeks ago and not lost all of my progress that I worked so hard for!!!  Oh well.  I guess it was probably good for my body to take some time off.  

Oh, and she also suggested I looked for new, roomy in the toe box shoes.  Best. Doctor. EVER!  Who wouldn't like a doctor that gives them permission to buy new running shoes?

Next Triathlon is this Sunday.  I was planning to DNS, but I think I may try it (carefully and slowly of course) and the doctor said I could as long as I wasn't in a lot of pain before or during.  She said I would probably see a flair up afterwards if I felt ANY pain during.  I think she knows me and knows I'll do it anyway....  DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME!  

Anyone else have a Neuroma and have any advice for me?  How did yours heal?  Do you have any issues now?  

Anyone have roomy shoe suggestions???

Melting My Heart!

Two days ago I decided to test my foot to see what would happen if I ran on it.  I got my running clothes on and when my girls (ages 7 and 4) saw me, they begged to go with me.  My 7 year old has been talking to me about running for awhile because a friend of hers runs with her mom.  She tried once last year but got a little winded and I think that scared her.

While I really wasn't sure how far I could go, I agreed to them joining me.  I mean, how could I not!  It just melts my heart that my girls want to participate in the sport I love so much.  It also makes my heart smile that they see me doing something healthy and they are inspired to do it too.

It took them 20 minutes to get dressed because they had to have the "perfect" running outfit.  Here is the oldest....

Of course, my son had to photo bomb!

The middle little!

Them showing off their muscles!

Too cute!!

The run was a little rough for me and hurt a bunch afterwards.  The oldest did well pacing herself and I gave her a few hints on making her form better.  The middle child sprinted ahead shouting, "See you later slow pokes!" and then promptly got tired and started whining.  She did eventually sprint some more and took breaks when she needed.

It just melted my heart to see them want to join me.  

Anyone else have children wanting to be like you??  How does it make you feel?

My Hubby Has a Problem

I am trying very hard to lose the last 20 pounds.  I have been overweight and unhealthy my whole life.  I finally found what works for me and I was doing really well.  I had lost 30-35 pounds (out of about 50 I needed to lose) and I was on a roll.  I did have several weeks where I slid back and needed to gain some momentum and I took a week off for vacation.  I've been working on the last 20 pounds for about 4 months now.   Please understand me when I say that I LOVE my hubby... I really do, but he has a major food problem.

pop and an icy

What I cleaned out of our fridge after just 1 week!

My husband LOVES food.  He loves to eat out and he loves large portions.  He swears he has cut back, but I haven't seen it.  In fact, while camping we made hamburgers and I had 1.  My hubby.... 3.5. Yes, almost 4 burgers!  I would have been sick.  The thing is, for most of his life he could eat that way and still stay skinny.  He has huge arm muscles.  Too bad he is now in his mid-thirties and it's not as easy to stay in shape.  He is getting a huge belly and his snoring has been so bad lately.  

I personally could care less how he looks in regards to weight.  What I am most concerned about is his health.  It is also very hard for me to stick to my calories when he constantly wants to go out or bring food home.  Most of the time I do pretty good saying no, but if I'm tired or stressed, it's all over!

Anyone else have a "toxic" hubby or friend/co-worker who makes it hard to stay on track?!

Tendonitis? While I Heal.....

Since my bone scans came back negative for fractures (yay!) I have become a google doctor.  I'm pretty sure that if they had a certificate or license for those of us who self diagnose based on google, I would be the first to be awarded the degree!  I can't help but want to know what is going on with my foot.  

The swelling was really ouchy after a day of sitting in a wheelchair at Cedar Point! 

(ignore my ugly feet- I hate feet!!!)

While all of my symptoms still really lead me to a stress fracture of the 5th metatarsal, the only other thing I can come up with is peroneal tendonitis.

I have to say, that I think the doctors perpetuate this google doctoring.  Since my scans were negative I was referred to a podiatrist.  When they called to schedule the appointment, the receptionist asked what days were best for me and I responded, "The sooner the better" and her offer..... Wait for it.....

"Our next appointment is August 25th, will that work?"

Ummmmm... NO!  I can barely walk without searing pain and I would like to know what is going on so that I can correct it so that I can train again.  An appointment a whole MONTH from now is NOT going to work for me.   I hate to be one of those people that demand to been seen right away because I know they are busy, but REALLY?  I am being referred to her because I have pain walking, not because I need to have my toenails clipped!  I politely explained that I was in pain even while sitting still and walking was downright painful.  The receptionist kindly "found" an appointment this coming Wednesday.  THANKS!

Does anyone else have this same problem??  Do you have to beg for sooner appointments?

Enough of the whining huh??

The kids had a good day a Cedar Point on Monday.  Too bad it was 100 degrees~ it was a bit hot there and the one thing they enjoyed the most was the splash pad.  We managed to hold them off until evening.  Maybe we should have just gone to a water park!!

Here is big little riding a kid ride, all smiles.  She also went on 3 roller coasters- I was so proud of her for being brave.  She is just tall enough to get on the easier coasters.

Tuesday we took little man to his GI pediatrician appointment.  Story of why here.  He is losing his iron stores again and they are worried he will need another transfusion before long, so we have to find out where he is losing blood.  They have scheduled a colonoscopy and endoscopy for the first week in August.  That ought to be fun for a 19 month old!  He has to be on a clear liquid diet for 24 hours!  

Wednesday we took the kids to the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo. It was beautiful.  Thursday I went for my bone scan and then Friday we left for camping with my entire family.  It was HOT, but we all had a lot of fun.

That was our week...what did you do this week that was fun?  We are always looking for (nearby) attractions for the kids.

Still in Pain

I hate to be a Debbie (sorry to all of you named Debbie!) Downer... I wish I had something exciting to share or something wonderful to report.  I just don't.

The x-rays did not show a stress fracture so I was sent for a bone scan today.  The bone scan showed nothing.  It is so frustrating to have no more answers than I did before.  While I should be excited that there isn't a fracture, I'm not.  I'm not because I'm in so much pain and I have no idea why.  I'd like to have an answer.  My foot hurts so much that I often have to fall to the floor crying in pain.  Even as I sit here and type this, my foot is throbbing and the pain is pretty strong.

My doctor's call was like, "yay!  No stress fracture, you can go back to training."  I felt deflated.  I can barely walk, much less train.  Just because he tells me that they found nothing wrong doesn't mean the pain suddenly goes away.  He did offer to send me to a podiatrist to further explore the pain.  Who knows how soon I'll get in to see her.  Even if I do get in to see her, I'm not sure she will know what else to offer me.

I guess I will just rest my foot until it starts to feel better?

Anyone have any encouraging words for someone who is down and out from something like this?  What would you do?

Pride and Pain

So I finally hung my medal hanger that I MADE from scratch!  I think it looks pretty darn cool.  I cut out words/phrases that inspired me from magazines (took me ages!!) and modge-podged them on before adding all the hardware.  Pretty sweet!!

So now, the not so sweet-

I have finally scheduled a doctor's appointment for this morning.  I've held off as long as I could.  :(  I really hate to go to the doctor for any kind of pain because sometimes I feel like it must all be in my head.  I know if I finally get convinced to go, it must be getting  pretty bad.  I'm going on two weeks now of pain in my lateral part of my right foot on the outside.  Plantar Fascitis?  Fracture?  Inflammation of the ?  Who knows.  All I know is that it started hurting after a few longer runs and I have iced it, taken advil, and nothing has helped.  I know, I know- REST... but there is no rest for me!

I think that's partly why I don't want to go to my doctor.  I know he will tell me to rest it.  I don't want to stop training.  The bad part?  I do some training with his wife!  EEK!  If he tells me to rest it, she will  know and maybe tell him I am not doing what he told me??

Anyway, I'm really hoping he can just tell me that it's an inflammation and give me some meds and send me on my way.  We'll see.

Yesterday I was going to run outside, but this is what the sky looked like:

so I opted to run in our school fitness room for staff:

Nothing amazing, but it's free and it's there!  Too bad they are done cleaning that building and the thermostat read 80 degrees since the AC was off.  You can see the open windows in the picture.  Since it had stormed outside, the temp had dropped to 70 and the wind was blowing.  By the time I left the room, the thermostat read 76.  WIN!

I sweated it out for 4 miles until my foot felt almost numb from pain... and I really mean sweated:

Gross!  I know!  But, I love that I can knock it out and sweat that much.  To me, it feels like I'm kicking butt during the workout.

Today my friends whom I convinced to sign up for the Women's Triathlon are meeting me to do a practice tri.  We will be swimming in a friend's pond, biking around a few blocks, and then knocking out a 5K.  Woooo!!  Let's hope my doctor has good news for me...otherwise I may have to pretend I never talked to him since his wife will be tri-ing it with me today!!  Lots of swim~bike~run~fun~

Happy Thursday everyone!

Train the Way you Race

I had to share this- it's pretty funny!

Triathletes should train the way they race....

The Important Things in Life!

While out on an 8 mile run with these girls this morning:

I thought a lot about the important things in life.  One friend always seems to have plans.  She has a lot of friends and she is very social.  Another friend and I remarked that we don't have a lot of friends and rarely have plans outside our family.  She then made the comment that running is her social life....the only "Girls Night Time Out."  What a great statement!  I love my family, but I always feel guilty about taking time out for me and for my training.  I guess I should consider my activities my time to be social and that's ok.  It's much better that I am out running, biking, and swimming rather than out partying and drinking (though those would be fun too.... I just don't have time!)

So other than Swimming, Biking, and Running...what is important to me???

This silly guy!

A great big sister!

and a middle sister that played so hard, she wore herself out!

These three beautiful children are my life when I am not out being me.  I am an awesome mom when I can be and when I'm not around (because of my exercise) I'm out being me so that I can be awesome when I am back!  After all, a healthy mom (or dad) can be a good parent for much longer!

My sitter bought our kids new swimsuits because they already swam so much this summer that the suits have all but fallen off of their tanned bodies!  The girls were so excited to show them off and were photo bombed by little brother who wanted to be excited too.  

except, he doesn't stop moving for the picture to not be blurry!

I'd post a picture of my awesome hubby who lets me have my me time without EVER complaining, but he hates the camera and doesn't let me to take pictures of him.  

One more thing.... guess what I bought recently?  Something VERY important.  I finally got a road ID. After falling on my bike a few weeks ago I realized that I should probably have one.  If I had knocked myself out, no one would have known who I was or who to call.  

It's even pink!

If you have been thinking of getting one for yourself, do it NOW!!!  

To set one up, it's sooooo easy.  I ordered mine (shown above) and it was delivered in 2 days!  Talk about service!  I wore it on my run this morning and didn't even remember it was there.  The one I bought was the ankle one in pink.  It is very light and comfy.  The website is easy to navigate.  Road ID has not compensated me for this and I paid for my ID in full....this is just an honest review!  However, if you use the link above I get some $ towards my next purchase.  

While you are out being awesome, why not be safe?!

Have a great day everyone!!!!

Being a Rookie

When does someone stop being a rookie?

I wondered this as I rode my bike through the beautiful countryside this morning.

(not from my ride, but could have been!)

I have to preface this post with the comment that I am NOT calling anyone out or trying to put anyone down.  My thoughts simply stem from my own self-consciousness...not from anyone else belittling me or any other rookie!

So when do I get to stop being a rookie?

Another blogger posted a blog that included a picture of a bike in transition and challenged the readers to decide if the person was a rookie or not.  This was all done in fun, but frankly I wasn't sure what he was getting at.  The post mentioned the numerous gels taped to the bike frame and the power meter.  I wasn't sure if the comment about the gels was to make fun of the fact that he had them there or not- which I guess makes me more of a rookie than the pictured rookie!  

I have no idea if taping gels to my bike is a rookie mistake.  I don't even know what a power meter is... I know it tells you wattage of power, but if you gave me a number, I'd have no idea how you got it or if it was good or bad!  

BIG BLINKING SIGN ------> ROOKIE!

I think back to when I started running... like before I was even willing to run a 5K.  I remember someone asking me if I wanted to buy a tech shirt and I didn't even know what a tech shirt was!  The funny thing is now, when I see someone running in a cotton T-shirt I wonder if they are new to running, since I couldn't imagine running 

in a cotton shirt.  So does that mean I am no longer a rookie?  At least a little?

So going back to the blog post by another blogger...  Looking at the picture, the person was surely less of a rookie than I am!  I have to think though that even those triathletes that think they are no longer rookies still do things that the Pros laugh at.  Don't you think?  Or at the very least, they are doing things that a few years from now we will wonder what the heck they were thinking!

So I offer this question- when will I no longer be a rookie?  What is it that I have to learn?

A friend of mine and I both joined a triathlon club here in our area.  To say that it was hard is an understatement.  While I don't think it was the club's intention to make us feel this way, we certainly have had a hard time breaking down the barriers to get to know the people that are already "in the club."   They already have friends and groups they work with.  We've had to insert ourselves into places that are uncomfortable just to get to know a few of the people.  I've made up my mind to be the "welcome wagon" to anyone NEW who joins as soon as I get my feet on the ground and get to know the ins and outs of the club.  It would serve them well to work hard to embrace new members.

Then I stop to think- maybe, just maybe, it's my own self-conscious behavior that keeps me feeling this way.  I mean, the club members whom I have gotten to talk to have been wonderful to me.  They didn't approach me, but when I have approached them, they were very welcoming.  I'm sure they have no problem with me coming to their club swims or runs, after all, I paid to be a member.  I really think I just need to work harder at joining in the fun and stop worrying about what they are thinking.

To all of you out there that are no longer rookies or newbies, embrace those of us who are.  Know that we are the ones who will help you keep your sport going after you are retired.  Get to know us, help us, and work with us.  You were all rookies or newbies at some point too.  

My plans...

I can't think of a title, so I'm sorry if that's really lame-o.

I've been doing pretty decent with my training.  My plan is to not follow a plan.  Normally I'm a plan kind of girl, but I'm signed up for so many "different" things that I was going crazy trying to mesh all of the "plans" that should be in place.  Make sense?

Upcoming races:
July 28th- Sylvania's Women's only Tri
August 18- Vermilion Sprint Tri (I decided to downgrade to the sprint until I'm more comfortable)
September 22- Detroit Women's Half Marathon
October- Columbus Half Marathon????

I'm still debating on the last one.  We love to visit friends in Columbus and I think if we can make it work, hubby will take that Saturday off and we will head down for the weekend on Friday night.

So, really, I should be training for the half marathons, but I need to work in the tri training too.  Since the swims really depend on the weather and my work scheduled (due to the pool only being open during certain times and the open water swims being available only on certain dates), I have to make sure I do them when I can.  I'd like to swim more, but it's hard to work it in.  I need to practice biking outside since the wind is what I need to learn to deal with, but it's often too late at night when I am able to fit it in.

So...as you can see above, I don't really have a plan.  I do what I can, when I can!  I try to get at least 2 bike rides of an hour or so a week.  I try to run 3 times a week.  I try to get at least one brick (bike/run) in a week.  I try to swim 2 times a week...more if possible.  When this all works into the week and what distances I do depend on time, how I feel, and who I have with me!!!!

It's the best I can do.

I can say that I've been doing some longer runs with friends (8 miles this last Sunday).

Some issues have come up- Remember when I posted the pictures of my bruises from my bike crash.  Well, my left elbow is still sore and I notice more pain and numbness after swimming or longer runs.  I feel the pain and numbness run down my arm and into my pinky when I pull water in swimming.  Running just makes it sore and tired feeling.

I've been icing it when I can and wearing a brace when I sleep to isolate it.  From my oh-so-technical googling, I think I have a pinched nerve because the symptoms seem to match.  My pinky and about 1/2 of my ring finger are tingly and somewhat numb.  The pain runs down my arm into my fingers.  I'm not sure if I should get someone to check it out.  There isn't much anyone can do for it.  If anything, I should be taking anti-inflamatories for it.  Sigh......

Anyway...at least my arm doesn't keep me from training.  I can swim even though it's sore.   When swimming, the major pain mainly comes AFTER.

Apparently I can rationalize everything- if it isn't too painful DURING the exercise, it must be ok to continue to do it huh?!?!  Just call me Doctor!!!!

So there- my plan is to have no plan and to just do it!