TriAya (Yanti) and lmscozz (Lynn), Manatee Mentors--FULL! (Page 57)

MINI-PIGLETS!!!

RyRy ... I am sooooo proud.

btw mentors are self selected, they just wait for the open groups to fill up a bit more before unleashing the next ones and so forth. you guys will be in the ring soon with hordes of delicious mini-piglets pining for your bodies ... err ... wisdom.

yay on the bike trainer!

also, it's a really good idea to build up lots of bike base before doing a HIM. i mean, years' worth. with the additional running volume you'll get training for hm/mary you'll also be able to translate your incredible speed into long-course.

i think you'll actually have a much better experience by waiting and building up.

Okay, I swear I'm not trying to pull you away from your wife and baby manatee (which, since manatees are sea cows their babies are calves, not piglets although I think we should continue to refer to our future mentees as piglets even if that makes me a sow and you a hog) but there's no reason you can't train towards a fall HIM and see how it goes.  Lake Geneva won't sell out so if you end up having the time and feeling ready for it you can always register last minute and go for it.  That was my plan last year and my training in May and the beginning of June was really solid then when things went crazy I ditched the idea without losing money.

Ryan, go ahead and change my story to this:

I did my first triathlon in 2009 as motivation to exercise and lose weight. Although I had been working out at the gym for 4 months before starting a 12 week training plan I only managed to lose 3lbs and was terrified to do the race. By the time I stumbled into my husband's arms at the finish line of that sprint I was in tears. I was so proud and amazed that my flabby, weak body had done something so impossible that I was hooked.
During the off season I got diagnosed with ADHD and between meds and coping strategies I was finally able to create enough structure to start training consistently and control my diet. With all that going for me (and a new road bike to replace my hybrid) I was able to lose 30lbs and drop 34 minutes off my time when I raced the same course again. That time moved me from a solid BOP finisher right up to the FOP.
My weakest leg is the run so that's where my focus has been. Between April and October I knocked 4 minutes off my 5k PR and am shooting to drop another 2 minutes this year. Part of my strategy includes running longer and as part of that, and in prep for my HIM, I ran my first half marathon in November. An Achilles injury at the end of October derailed my training but I managed to run the entire race, pain free, and only missed my goal time by 1 minute.

It unfortunately will not let me edit it (says i have a 30 min time limit to edit after initial posting) unless I am missing some secret.  So maybe we can adjust it once it goes "live" or we can always reply to the post and add your new statement.

And thank you for your support Allison!  I am going to try to balance a little of everything this year and we'll see how it goes!  And there is nothing wrong with being a sow and hog right?

Loving this latest exchange...it seems Alison and I are on the same timeline (not to mention the same race circuit)...hadn't thought of IMTX for 2012 Alison, thanks for the idea!  

I also get manic on occasion and try to convince DH to just "sign up right quick" for IMCOZ 2011.  No luck so far, but I did get him to a.  get married  b.  get dogs  and c. make two babies.   Point is, I've got him on the line, just have to reel carefully.

Oh, and Ryan and Alison, just consider me comic relief/crazy aunt for the mentor group....I won't officially sign up, so there's room for the new guys, but definitely prepare yourself for the random drive by posting.  Can't wait to see the thread go live.

I am sitting here mapping out 1/2 IM training...and like Yanti mentioned to Alison, I am looking at a long base.  I got the Triathlete's Training Bible for myself my husband for Christmas, and in the self assessment part, definitely came up with Endurance as a limiter.  Looking at starting base building, like, tomorrow.

I also agree with Friel that sports psychology is a huge part of performance, so I'll be looking for reading material on that topic. (any suggestions?)  

Oh, and I am now convinced that I had at least an iron deficiency or possibly full blown anemia going into the Marathon (brought about by training).  Wish I'da thought of that back then, but it really fits the decompensation I went through at the end.  Well, it's either that, or I am fcuking crazy.  Could go either way.  But I am going to keep an eye on it going forward.  FYI for y'all out there...the estimated numbers of endurance athletes that have iron deficiencies during training are surprisingly high, particularly for women...which makes sense as the calorie restriction aspect of (esp. female) runner's diets tends to force exclusion of animal protein.


Anyway, enough I, I, I!  Hope you guys all had a great holiday season and are enjoying the New Year!  Can't wait to meet this baby girl that is coming Ryan!  Alison is right, Lake Geneva is always there if you want to pull the trigger on a late season tri, and there's time to train for a fall running event.  That baby will be ready for a baby jogger somewhere around 6 months, so you can even get her out there at the end of the year...

Happy New Year Manatees.

Q


 

Lynn, 

wow, thanks for the information.  I have tangled with low iron before, but only as a result of a horrific ectopic pregnancy rupture wherein I subsequently tried to bleed out and (duh) became anemic due to the blood loss...even after a transfusion.  Yikes.  

Anyway, since I believe myself to be in perfect health and basically immortal outside of pregnancy (sort of the kryptonite of my life), it NEVER even occurred to me that I might be anemic.  And I can't prove it, but I am definitely going to rule it out from now on.  And regardless, I am going to start eating (and timing nutrients) like I am iron deficient...and get it checked...and if I need something, I am definitely going to check into your supplement...sounds good.

I was on 'slow FE' before, and it worked well, but because iron can be toxic, I am only going to supplement if a blood test shows I need to.

I wonder who else is anemic and doesn't know it... 

So since my IUD minimizes my monthly blood loss (such a nice way of referring to that) does that mean I'm less susceptible?  I was anemic during my first pregnancy and borderline with the second two so I should probably pay attention to that during training as well. 

Lynn, my mom had a hysterectomy because her extended periods had caused her to be so anemic that even with supplements she couldn't get into a normal range.  For years the doctors had said she had chronic fatigue syndrome but after the surgery her iron levels bounced back and she felt great.

Haha Lynn.  We called the wedding the "party" to keep his anxiety down.  Well actually it was pretty much a party... 

bwaaaa haaaaa

i've read this a bunch of times now and i'm still giggling ... piglets mini-piglets mini-manatees sea cows sows and hogs ...

well

i think you should re-post your bio, funny i've always been able to change ours days after posting ... hmmm ... so just add a post

it's something i've just known about you so i don't think i actually even mentioned it -and i think you knew also?- i was also diagnosed with adhd as an adult

just this holiday, every time i'm back at my folks i try to sort through some more of their old stuff, good grief there are rooms full ...

anyhow i went back through all my elementary school reports

made me laugh and cry

but it was so painfully starkly ridiculously obvious

anyhow

at least all my teachers noted 'she seems to have a sense of humor' when they were trying to fish for something positive to say HAHAHAHA

I bet you could change it because you have moderator powers. We're not cool enough to be given superpowers.

I never had any trouble in school with behavior or grades.  All the teachers said nice things on my report cards but they also always told my parents that I tended to zone out in class and not pay attention unless the lesson was new and/or challenging.  I was totally under the radar at school, and at home there were 6 kids and there were worse problems than my impulsiveness and general ditziness.  Looking back it's obvious but we didn't know back then what we know now. You know?

OMG Alison and Yanti, you guys are breaking my heart.  Girls with any "exception" (and I'm gonna go out on a limb here and suggest that you both are not only exceptional, but "twice exceptional."  You can google the term if you like.) were so much more likely to scrape by, and sort of float along in school because learning differences manifest in ways so different from boys...who tend to act out which gets more attention...

I am so sorry society failed you guys as children...it is extremely useful to hear your stories, so keep telling them...it might just help another parent recognize what is going on with their kid...

Based on my own experience and research after I found out some surprising information about my daughter, I realized I had to monitor her school situation very closely.  And sure enough, even in a class specifically geared for kids like her, she ended up starting to have some classic "girl" issues in this year.  I hated to do it, but ended up having to intervene slightly with her teachers.  Something my parents never did for me...I felt like a classic pushy Mom, but guess what?  It worked!  She is kicking butt now! 

So back to the original point, thanks so much for sharing your stories.  It is important for us to hear.
 

Don't cry for me Argentina.  Sorry, couldn't help it.

Seriously though, if it weren't for ADD I wouldn't have my two amazing daughters.  That alone makes it all worth it.

I see ADD as a benefit. Since my brain is already wired up different from most of the world (also known as neuro-typicals or NT) I get a lot of credit for thinking outside the box without any effort at all.  I also notice things that a lot of others don't because my brain is always searching for the most interesting stimulus and doesn't get stuck focusing on one thing at a time.  It also might mean that I'm a demi-god, but I'm not entirely convinced of that theory and Rick Riordan isn't responding to my emails requesting more information.

*I LOOOOOVE YOUR NEW AVATAR! SO SPEEDY AND SPORTY AND FITTING!*

wait, where you saying something important ... no, i don't have adhd, why do you ask? sorry, what did you ask?

I do appreciate your words and thoughts. Hugely. And right on about going to bat for your daughter.

I actually made out like a champ. My folks didn't make me go to school too much, and I got everything I wanted in the way of educational materials at home and gave myself a helluvan education, and one I loved. Chemistry sets, microscopes, a whole bottle of ether I spilled, whoops, was trying to anesthetize fruit flies, growing plants, growing pets, endless books, magazines shipped from America, daily discussions of the world and politics and history and culture around the dining-room table.

Plus, the principal of my elementary school was the coolest dude. i was perpetually getting sent there and he would teach me about stuff like mathematical powers or we'd play chess. The fact that I had one ally made a huge difference.

Haha Yanti, I read your reply on email and only got to the part about my avatar being sporty and whatever else you said and then had to log on to BT to look at it again and admire myself and see if it really was, and...wait, what the hell were we talking about?

Hahaha, I am dying, nay, LOLing right now.  

Oh and do they have tiny little white masks to hold over the fruit flies noses, or what?  Actually, it sounds like your folks and your dear, dear principal "got" you, very cool, nice to hear.... 

DO we really have to quit this group?  It is a bit of a guilty pleasure...of course as the crazy aunt I can just post wherever the hell I damn well please, so be ready, you never know when I'll swing by y'all's new groups.

Heart,
Q 

Ha ha ha, Q ... always a girl after my own heart. Or manner. Or general bizarrity. Uncommon bizarrity?

I will tell ya, more people have 'gotten' me in triathlon than just about anywhere else. I guess you gotta be a little weird to want to do this stuff and even weirder to actually do it.

My parents never have gotten me and doubt ever will, but I was an extraordinarily good manipulator AND they weren't around a lot, so that worked real nicely for getting my own way. I will say I don't ever remember them coming down hard on me for school stuff (and I had a lot of behavioral issues there as well) although the expectations at home, in public, and in terms of actual accomplishments were extraordinarily high.

And now i gotta track down mr. robert youel, my former principal, for being such a great guy and making a difference.

of course we don't have to quit this group. threads, unless one of us REALLY screws up and gets it yanked, live forever. I'll continue checking in from time to time and i sure hope you guys keep showing up, because that's what I'm checking in TO SEE. YOU!

Manatee [melon press]

I know I haven't been posting a lot lately, but Q -- I can't quit you!  Seriously, this group cannot just die.  You guys are way too cool and I am way too needy and fat still.

So, a me me update:  Still struggling with getting out there to train, but this is going to be my week, baby.  Went to the doctor this past Friday and the post-holiday news was that I gained 1 pound, but since I was so dehydrated, it was really two pounds of fat.  Still, gaining 2 pounds of fat over the holidays is nothing compared to my previous gluttunous ways, so I am going to declare victory and move on.  Or at least, try not to dwell.  Over the holidays, we drove to NY and back (the way up was straight shot with 4 adults, 2 kids, and two dogs through a driving blizzard in the middle of a blizzard, joy!) over the holidays and I didn't get any exercise in.  I am to go back in 4 weeks and I also need to be half marathon ready for end of February, so gotta get my run on.  And, yay yay yay, my favorite trainer at the Y has created a group training boot camp that works for my schedule, so I will be adding back weight training 2 days a week starting this week.  Very happy about that; I really think that is going to be the key for my weight loss.  My current plan is to focus on running and strength (with spin once a week for fun/XT) for right now to get the !@#@$% weight off of me, and then go back to swimming and try to tri again.  In the meantime, half marathon, here I come.

You guys all so very much make me laugh and motivate me, so don't go away, OK?  I promise to be a better manatee, even if I am not doing much swimming...

I agree! yaaaaaaaaaaaay Dinabeanie and wonderful to see you!

Whoa Lynn, but I thought spinach *was* an iron-rich food! how ... ironic?

all this talk about iron is making me think i need piglet delivery of a McD's meal, OJ for the drink, thankyouverymuch.

OK, whaaaaa on the spinach?  I had always been told to eat spinach to help with anemia issues.  Spinach, red meat (yeah, that's my excuse for those ribeyes!), raisins and kidney beans are my go-to iron foods (and I do most of my cooking in cast iron; as much as possible). 

Thanks for the flipper hugs.  I had meant to chime in on all the anemia talk, as I have similar issues. 

Right, spinach is one of those weird foods that you think would be helpful, but actually it's not.  And I can't remember if thats cooked and uncooked or just one or the other.  Sigh.

THere's all sorts of things that can inhibit iron absorption...I am a coffeeholic, so trying to get my iron in the morning will probably not be as good as maybe getting it around dinner time.  And then there's something about citrus (orange juice Yanti???) or calcium, can't remember, but it HELPS with iron absorption...I am trying to come up with a steak (sorry Lynn) salad (no spinach) with mandarin oranges recipe...maybe an asian vinaigrette to dress it?  

I am also going to get a baseline iron level just to be on the safe side.  Like Lynn mentioned your iron levels might be ok, but Ferritin might be low which I believe is sort of the first sign, etc, etc.  Just want to know where I'm starting from before I go back into training mode...

And you know, i need to go find a cast iron pot...and skillet...good ideas... 

Welcome back Dineen.  It's good to hear from you finally...geez
Allison and I have started a mentor group although we were late so we're not officially "live" yet and our still stuck in the mentor staging area but you're welcome to join us if you want.

And yes, if you take any iron supplements then it's best to do it with OJ/vitamin C as this helps increase iron absorption.  Also, if you take any antacids...don't take them within 2-4 hours of taking iron.  At least these are the things that I have learned by my wife being pregnant.

There are something like 9 open mentor groups currently in that forum and probably another 10+ ready to go live ahead of ours. I'm thinking we may not be mentoring this time around simply because there isn't a need

patience, manatee-wan.

i have a feeling they're going to keep groups queued up straight through spring when the new season ostensibly starts. we're still getting tides of newcomers and returnees.

And with that, I'm going to go find a cow under an orange tree.

Not a goat making cheese under a lemon tree?