WoW! If you are in Utah you know that we got a crazy storm all of a sudden around 5 pm which seemed to come out of no where. And guess where I was??? ON MY BIKE!!!
When I started out it was calm with a few sprinkles...which I usually love riding in. So refreshing, cool and calming... but not for long. As the wind started to pick up I was seriously struggling to not blow over on my bike. Then it got worse and the leaves were whipping into my face! I seriously kept checking my face for blood where the leaves had whipped my face. And then it got WAY WORSE!!!
I was that biker that the cars were passing thinking... is she insane?!?! The rain and wind hurt and I could't see because I was trying to keep my head down so the rain wouldn't hurt so bad. The wind made it hard to keep my bike going straight and not blowing over. At first my thought was to finish my ride and then I realized that that was my CRAZY TALK! So I turned around and headed for home. That proved to be the hardest 5 miles and scariest ride on my bike to date! This pic doesn't do it justice. It was pouring rain and if you look at the mountains in the background you can see the storm. That last 5 miles home was the hardest ride ever. I was pedaling my guts out in the wind all the while being pelted by rain that felt like paintballs. As I sit here in my warm jammies and type this I am so thankful to have made it home safe without a bike crash... because there were a few close calls. Lets hope for better weather tomorrow.
LondonBrig
National Championship
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Saturday, October 6, 2012
I am totally posting this picture against my better judgement! LOL But it is a perfect picture for todays topic. SLAYING THE FATIGUE MONSTER Whether your running a 5k, half marathon, marathon or triathlon we have all had that moment in our race when you hit a wall and want to give up. This pic clearly shows one of those races for me. I was done, exhausted, and had given up! I have thought about this topic a ton and normally it pops into my head after swimming, biking and about mile 1 into the run. I start playing mind games with myself. Why am I doing this??? I'm tired! I haven't trained enough! I'm not running as fast as I thought I would. And I get discouraged. And as soon as I have lost the mental battle I have LOST the Race! I am a firm believer in “If you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re probably right” Everyone says half the battle is mental but I disagree. I think 90% of the battle is mental. So here are some pieces of articles that I read and I wanted to share with all of you.
You have trained, you have done the work, now BELIEVE in YOURSELF!!!- LondonBrig
Slaying the Fatigue Monster
You have trained, you have done the work, now BELIEVE in YOURSELF!!!- LondonBrig
By Rick Morris
The next time you start gasping for air in the last mile of a 5K or try to keep running on legs that feel like over cooked noodles near the end of a marathon, keep one thing in mind. You really aren’t fatigued - it’s all in your head! OK – I may be exaggerating a little bit. There always has been and there always will be physical reasons for fatigue but some of today’s running coaches and researchers think that one of the main causes for fatigue are not physical, but mental in nature.
Slaying the Fatigue Monster
By Ingrid Loos Miller
No matter how fit or how fast you are, central fatigue kicks after four hours of sustained effort and your thoughts turn from blissful to “you haven’t trained enough,” ”you are slowing down” and worst of all ”you don’t belong here.”
Left unchecked these thoughts can become self-fulfilling prophecies. Focusing on how tired you are slows you down, making you feel even worse which slows you down even more. This downward spiral of despair can turn a race into a suffer-fest. You finish the race feeling defeated and resolve to train more next time. But training your body will not solve the problem. The fatigue always arrives and you have to deal with it.
Here is a simple mental strategy that will keep your thoughts working for you rather than dragging you down. Flooding your mind with memories of success will make you will feel better and when you feel better-you race better.
It is important to do these steps at home in a comfortable setting. Put this into your mental toolkit and use it when you are really struggling.
Step 1: Make a list of past accomplishments that make you feel especially victorious and strong. Include things like overcoming a personal struggle, landing a big account at work and your latest race PR. Draw upon all aspects of your life and come up with at least 5 powerful memories.
Step 2: Imagine deep fatigue/despair as something concrete and living. It can be anything, but ectoplasm-goo monsters work well. What color is it? How does it move? As you get more fatigued, does it grow larger or does it multiply? The more detailed and bizarre the image, the easier it will be to remember. Give it a name. Draw it if you like.
Step 3: Pulverize the monster with the powerful memories from Step 1, shaped into bullets, bombs or poison gas. The defeat should be graphic and when the battle is over, only memories of your greatness remain.
Next time the fatigue monster comes knocking...POW!
Ingrid’s book, Ironplanner: Iron-Distance Organizer For Triathletes, offers no-nonsense mental and organizational tools that can be used with any training plan.
No matter how fit or how fast you are, central fatigue kicks after four hours of sustained effort and your thoughts turn from blissful to “you haven’t trained enough,” ”you are slowing down” and worst of all ”you don’t belong here.”
Left unchecked these thoughts can become self-fulfilling prophecies. Focusing on how tired you are slows you down, making you feel even worse which slows you down even more. This downward spiral of despair can turn a race into a suffer-fest. You finish the race feeling defeated and resolve to train more next time. But training your body will not solve the problem. The fatigue always arrives and you have to deal with it.
Here is a simple mental strategy that will keep your thoughts working for you rather than dragging you down. Flooding your mind with memories of success will make you will feel better and when you feel better-you race better.
It is important to do these steps at home in a comfortable setting. Put this into your mental toolkit and use it when you are really struggling.
Step 1: Make a list of past accomplishments that make you feel especially victorious and strong. Include things like overcoming a personal struggle, landing a big account at work and your latest race PR. Draw upon all aspects of your life and come up with at least 5 powerful memories.
Step 2: Imagine deep fatigue/despair as something concrete and living. It can be anything, but ectoplasm-goo monsters work well. What color is it? How does it move? As you get more fatigued, does it grow larger or does it multiply? The more detailed and bizarre the image, the easier it will be to remember. Give it a name. Draw it if you like.
Step 3: Pulverize the monster with the powerful memories from Step 1, shaped into bullets, bombs or poison gas. The defeat should be graphic and when the battle is over, only memories of your greatness remain.
Next time the fatigue monster comes knocking...POW!
Ingrid’s book, Ironplanner: Iron-Distance Organizer For Triathletes, offers no-nonsense mental and organizational tools that can be used with any training plan.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Tibble Fork Canyon Ride
I did it! I made it! Hooray! I climbed 6000 feet up Tibble Fork Canyon on my bike today. But as I was running around getting ready to go work out it hit me.... No matter how hard my workouts are or how bad they kick my butt... the hardest part it getting out the door! Finding the motivation after a day of work and taking care of the kids to go exert more energy that doesn't even exist in me is more intimidating that any workout! But I will tell you that you NEVER EVER feel worse after a workout! It is the only time in my day that I get to go relieve stress and unwind. Just me and the road, beautiful scenery and great music. So that is what I did. I geared up and headed out for a 25 mile bike ride from my house to American Fork Canyon all the way to the top! It was a beast to climb. 7 Miles straight up the mountain but the scenery was AMAZING! The leaves are changing colors and it was quiet and cool (which was good since I was sweating my guts out!) So there you have it my workout for the day. I also want this blog to be about you. Those who are running and or training for a marathon, 5k or triathlon. I welcome your questions about nutrition, workouts or any other questions you might have about the crazy sport of triathlons! Please tell me what you have on the map for a race! If you don't have anything on the map, hop of the computer and sign up for your first 5k... you won't regret it. Can't wait to hear from you! -LondonBrig
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
And the Journey Begins...
Wow has this been an exciting, exhausting, and crazy process starting up this blog page! I am sooo excited to be able to share my journey with all of you. I am just coming down off my Team USA acceptance High:) The purpose of this blog is to post about my training, races, products I love and anything and everything you would ever want to know about the triathlon world... and last but not least so all of my wonderful friends and family can follow me on this journey! So as most of you know I have one year to train for Worlds in London so here goes nothing.... Ready... Set... Go!!!
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