The Ghoulie Mentor Group - Full (Page 50)

I shirked on my run yesterday so today is the day.
Of course the humidity is in the "feels like I am underwater" level today. Procrastination rarely pays!

I read your blog Ann, hope your running is pain/injury free.

Hey Wes, how's it going?

Things are hectic. Sunday a tornado took down a tower were my cell site is.  30 hours of work in two days makes it hard to train. Things are settling down now. I got my wet suit yesterday. I am hoping to ows tomorrow night once I get off the oncall. It would suck to be out there and get a call to leave. Thanks for asking Robin.  How are things in your world?  I am hoping to get a 60 mile bike ride in this weekend

Edited by wmcgee62 2010-06-10 4:56 PM

Thanks Wes

Wow, that sounds like a lot of work. Stay away from those tornados. It's a rule to live by. Have you tried on the wetsuit yet?
Things are the usual around here. I am just trying to get ready for my race in July. It is an uphill the whole way run. I am out of shape. I will be the person who makes the others look good. However, I WILL finish the sucker!

Whats on for the weekend?

I didn't get to try it last night but looking to use it today and tomorrow. I have tried it on and fits well other than the legs being too long

.....well??? Hope it went well, and was worth the wait. Water temps are getting so warm up here that I may not need mine for my 1st race (tri that is) after all, but I know it'll get more use eventually.

Good morning everyone!

How was your weekend?

Saturday had a flat tire on the tri bike about a mile from the house.  Fell and got some road rash. Those darn clipins.  Rode last nite for an hour. Got up early ran 5 miles this morning before work.  Things have mellowed so able to get more training in.


Edited by wmcgee62 2010-06-14 2:19 PM

The clipins got me too when I dropped my chain in my last race.  *sigh*  Someday I will get used to them! 

Good morning all!  My apologies for disappearing last week but my wife and her sister scheduled a last minute trip to celebrate their mother's 60th in Atlantic City.  Definitely not my cup of tea but she had a great time so that made everyone happy.

Now, it's time to start finally doing some consistent training. 

For me its definitely time for some consistent training. Everyone else must be busy training cause the forum isn't busy like it used to be. Seems like we had a big group but now less than half participates in the forum. Not that I expect everyone to participate all the time but I thought more would participate. I for one am thankful for this forum. Even though I dont participate every day it amazes me how a subject on my mind gets brought up with out me prompting it. I miss the inspires(hint hint) Sorry Ann its pick on you day.

Robin hows training going? Did you finish the book and if so any feed back.  I am interested your thoughts on his theory of heart rate and fat loss.  Its not new but wondered what you thought

...speaking of inspires, I've been reading race reports from (local) tri club members who completed the Eagleman Ironman 70.3 this past weekend. One athlete, mid-40's, was competing just 6 months after completing chemo for stage 3 breast cancer. Apparently she learned about her diagnosis last year just a few weeks before the race, raced anyway not knowing if she'd be around for this year's, and did it again just the other day. That just gives me chills, and helps to put my little race & my aches & pains in perspective. Trashed my hip running yesterday but really, so what? I'll limp along if I have to, but at least I had a clean mammogram last week, so it's all relative.

I was chatting with a guy in my swim clinic about a month ago...someone who's been competing in triathlons for about 10-15 years, and he was bemoaning the "changes in the sport," and particularly the burgeoning of all of these charity teams. He just didn't see the reason, or get the connection with triathlons. For me at least, it helps me to not only support and publicize a terrific cause (the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults), but it's truly a reality check for me when I'm discouraged about how old & achy I feel, or how little training I've done vs. what I wish I was doing... all things considered, I'm relatively healthy, and pretty damn lucky, and all that matters really is that I'm there and doing it.

After reading that the aches and pain from my knee (running 5 miles yesterday) and from the bike crash Saturday seem so small. Thanks Marla

Our very own Ann posted this today. I am stealing it and posting it here. Speaking of inspires!!!

I'm going to tell you a story this morning. It may be a little long, but it is sort of how I ended up where I am today.

Three years ago, June 15 was on a Friday. I had been working at the US Army War College for almost 3 years, and while I liked my job, and was pretty good at it, management had recently changed and I was not part of the good old boys club. I was feeling good about life, had some money in the bank, had just bought a motorcycle and a horse, things were good.

June 14 I got called into the big boss's office. I was getting written up for coming into work early. I had 41 laptops to have prepared for incoming foreign students and I was given 2 days to make it happen, not enough time. There was a group of us working on a Saturday to clean up the classrooms since classes were over for the summer and I went in early to work on the laptops before everyone else got there. In the letter I was to sign it said it was unsafe for me to be there at that time of day because I was a female. I should have taken the letter with me, sounds a bit like discrimination doesn't it? It wasn't a problem for me to be there in the middle of the night when I was on call though.

Anyway...
I refused to sign the letter but told them I would sign a letter of resignation by the end of the day. I figured with what I had in the bank, and if I gave 4 weeks notice I could last almost 3 months living off of my savings account. That should be enough time to find a new job. So June 14 I gave my 4 weeks notice.

June 15 I went to work. I didn't want to be there. I was grumpy, had a bit of a headache, and now realized I didn't want to be in that place for 4 more weeks. It was supposed to be a beautiful day, and I had ridden my motorcycle to work, so after 2 hours I decided to call it a day. I left, took the long way home on my bike, passed home and went to Gettysburg to see if my husband wanted to go out to lunch. We did go out, then on the way home I stopped at a local motorcycle shop to get his Father's Day gift. I put over 100 miles on my motorcycle that day.

That evening my brother and my niece came over to go horseback riding. We weren't going to go far. My daughter was only 3 at the time, and I was going to ride my new horse for the first time. I bought him from a guy in Texas. I wanted something kid friendly that my daughter could eventually ride, as her horse is getting up there in years, the guy in Texas told me how great and calm this horse was so I bought him. My parents had been over for dinner and had just left. We get the girls on my daughters horse and they go riding around the front yard while I get ready. I saddle up my horse, get on, and he just stands there. I couldn't get him to move, at all. I asked my brother, who was standing on the ground, to go get me the crop in the barn. (Mistake #1) When my horse saw the crop he flinched, I should have known better right then. My brother handed me the crop and I didn't hit him, I brushed his hind flank and he took off buckin' like you wouldn't believe. He had spun around so we were heading out through our fields. I remember thinking I need to get off of this horse I'm going to get hurt. (Mistake #2) I decided I was going to jump. I pulled my right foot out of the stirrup and leaned, and when I did he let out one hell of a kick and I was in the air.

I don't remember a lot after that point, some of this is from what other people told me. After being thrown the next thing I remember is lying face down in the ground thinking, before I ever look up that my arms were broke. I pick my head up and look at my left arm and think that one's broke. I put my head back down. I picked it up again and looked at my right arm and thought that one's broke too. I put my head back down. My brother came over and I told him I needed an ambulance. The horse started heading back at a run and my brother thought he was going to trample me. If he had my brother said he was going in to get a gun and he'd have made a blanket for me out of him.

My brother called for an ambulance. Then he called my parents to come back and take care of the kids. After I got thrown my husband got them off their horse and sent them in the house. With my horse acting all crazy, it had their horse fired up. I later learned when they got in the house my daughter starting throwing up everywhere, she saw me laying in the ground not looking too good. My parents take care of the kids, and clean up the house. Time passed, no ambulance. My brother called again. My husband starts calling every EMT we know, but can't find anyone home. I told them if we could get my arms splinted I could move enough to get in the car so they could drive me to the hospital. My brother was getting pretty ticked off that we do a lot for the fire company and there was still no ambulance. He called a third time and used words that would be filtered out here. After 3 calls and 45 minutes of me laying on the ground an ambulance arrives.

They asked where I hurt, I told them everywhere. There was never any doubt though that both arms were broken. They splinted my arms, rolled me over onto the backboard and put a neck collar on me an we were off to the hospital. I don't remember a whole lot about being in the hospital at all. I had no concept of time while I was there. In the ER the best nurse ever was checking me out, again, no doubt my arms were broken, she was trying to decide where to put an IV. She figured they would cast my arms, but she didn't know how high. An IV in the wrist was definitely out, she went for the elbow. If it had to be moved it would be moved, but she wanted to get it started for now. Someone came to take me for x-rays and she told them no one was touching me until I had some morphine, like I said best nurse ever. I don't remember the x-rays at all. I do remember her apologizing for cutting off my shirt, I really liked that shirt, too.

Things get fuzzier and fuzzier for me from here, may have been the morphine. When I had first gotten to the ER they told me the orthoped wouldn't be in until Saturday morning to see me. He was there before I left the ER for a hospital bed that night. The radius in both arms was obliterated... dust. I later saw the x-rays, there were no less than 12 pieces at each break, and those were just the countable pieces, we actually saw the dust that was once my bones. The surgeon talked to my husband, I don't remember the conversation. I do remember him saying without surgery I'd have casts on both arms, up to my armpits for 4-6 months. My husband consented to the surgery.

I don't remember a Saturday morning at all. I don't know when they took me to surgery. I don't remember anyone ever taking my pants off. After being wheeled to a room and helped into bed the next thing I remember is waking up with my arms ace wrapped from my hand to my elbow and metal sticking out of my arms. I had 2 pins sticking out of each hand, 2 pins sticking out of the middle of my forearm, and a metal bar attached to all of them. I closed my eyes again.

Nurses in the hospital were great, too. One of them was in a cast, she had fallen off of a horse, she took good care of me. I was supposed to be discharged Saturday afternoon. She called my doc and told him I needed to stay another day, so he said ok. Again, time was all wacky here. I remember them bringing in the big hospital mug full of water and setting it on a table beside me. I couldn't get it. I remember the phone ringing in my room. I couldn't answer it. I remember one time, I think it was night because it was dark trying to push the button for more morphine and I couldn't push the button. I even tried to hold the handle and push the button with my head and I couldn't get it. A nurse came in and saw what I was doing. She said she wasn't supposed to push the button for me, but she did. I couldn't do anything for myself. I could only bend my fingers to about 90 degrees,  my thumbs were no lobster claws and I was in a lot of pain.

I was like this for the next 6 weeks. I couldn't dress myself. I couldn't bathe myself. I couldn't get a drink out of the refrigerator. I could barely feed myself.

In the ER I told them my hand was numb. I was told it was because of the swelling. No one ever looked at anything but my arms. To cut to the chase here, a year later I had surgery to relieve a pinched nerve in my elbow. I also learned then after a CAT scan, an MRI, and a nuclear scan of some type, that I had broken my neck in 3 places. I also did other damage to my elbow, and a shoulder. I have also had back problems since then. Last year I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my spine. You aren't supposed to have arthritis in your spine when you're 36. So 3 years and $15,000 worth of medical bills later, here I am.

After the accident I was afraid to do anything. Up until that point I would go mache 2 with my hair on fire... no fear. Now I was afraid. I got lazy, I gained weight.

A year and a half ago I started my journey to lose weight. At the time I was still upset because the Ann I was I am never going to be again. It has taken awhile but the Ann I am now is pretty damn good, too.

So as the journey continues, I think it is only fitting that on the 3 year anniversary of getting thrown from a horse, and changing my life in so many ways, that marathon training starts today.

Sorry to bore you with my long story (and this is the short version)

Onward and Upward my friends

Yah, I bemoan my being over weight, and old, and slow. Then I remember the friends who are not here anymore, those who have MS or other diseases and would give anything to run, or even walk, and I shut up and keep moving. It doesn't make me always enjoy it, but I do appreciate being able!

DAS BOOT!

It often happens that way. Lots of people start then they fall off for various reasons. No worries, there is always a core group that sticks with it. And life does have a way of cropping up and taking us away from training and BT at times.

How did you like the wetsuit?

Speaking of... I got sidetracked with life and haven't finished it yet. I picked it back up last night. I hope to finish it out this week. I'll let you know though. So far it is making a lot of sense.

Okay, back to work here. I'll chat later.

Get some training in today, even if it is just a little bit. Every little bit counts!

Wow. That was anything but a bore... I just had a kid & a divorce & life upheaval & hellish job that made me fat. Thanks for posting that here, Robin.

I just had my self to blame!

Marla, I keep trying to send you inspires but can't because you have your page restricted. You could add me as a friend and then I could send inspires if you so desire.

UGH! Ann told me that a month or 2 ago, and I reset stuff and folks have left inspires... that's bizarre - haven't touched the settings since, so I'll check it again. I haven't been able to leave them for other folks either, so just gave up on the whole thing. thanks for letting me know!