Interview with a Vampire...er...Interviewing for a Coach--Need Your Help

I am entertaining the idea of retaining a coach to help me achieve my goal of finishing Ultraman Hawaii in 2016, and I am beginning a search. I don't think I will actually NEED the coach until summer next year, but that might be negotiable. I'd like to continue just doing some self-selected fun stuff through next summer, although I'd be actively building Ironman fitness.

The reason I'm posting this to my blog is so that readers who know of a coach that might fit my particular needs (or who ARE a coach) can make recommendations to me. Other than my data points, it would be helpful to me if said coach has:

• Either coached others who have done Ultraman or double+ Ironman
• Done double+ Ironman or Ultraman themselves
• Coached competitive women in their 50's
• Coached people who are or done the above while being a working stiff. Training for Ultraman is much different if you have several months off work during the year, or are retired or employed part-time

It was good for me to assemble this information, as it is possible that one or more prospective coaches might tell me I have no business trying to do this, and I am going into this process with eyes wide open and will benefit from all the feedback I can get!

So here goes, deep breath! Some personal information withheld, although the NSA will have that information ;)

Athlete Information for CRACKHEAD

Basic Demographics

·        Date of Birth: WITHHELD. I AM AN OLD LADY CURRENTLY AGE 58

·        Residence: STREET ADDRESS WITHHELD USA (house)

·        Marital Status: Single (divorced for so long I don’t even state that anymore!)

·        Children: None

·        Employment: Full time for WITHHELD as Critical Accounts Manager. Generally a 40-hour work week with flexibility to train during the day most days of the week, i.e., I can usually work around meetings. Work from home, so I have ZERO commute time!

·        Height: 5 feet 2 inches

·        Weight: Currently 114 lbs. (prefer to race at 110-112)

Health

·        Overall Health: Good. No heart conditions, cholesterol and blood pressure great.

·        Chronic conditions: Hypothyroidism (treated with 100mcg Synthroid daily), osteoporosis (treated with raloxifene HCL daily), missing ACL in left knee, several herniated disks L4-L5 region (generally they aren’t an issue and may no longer be herniated—wouldn’t know without an MRI), Morton’s Neuroma in right foot that appears manageable

·        Recovery strategies: Stretch :15-:30 daily (incorporates some yoga poses), massage every 2-3 weeks (every week about 12 weeks out from a major race). Generally sleep well 8-9 hours per night.

Training Facilities

·        Home Training Equipment: 4 bikes (2 TT, 1 road, 1 MTB), treadmill, universal weight machine and free weights (plus stability balls and medicine balls up to 20#), 2 TACX Satori trainers. One TT bike (custom built) has Powertap; other bikes have no power measuring device. Do not own (do not want) a Garmin and haven’t used HR monitor in years, but wouldn’t be averse to HR monitor. Do not use Strava, don’t want to.

·        Pool Access: I live .8 miles from my 25-yard pool which is at a YMCA, lap time on weekdays is 5-8; weekends 5-7 on Saturdays and 9-1 on Sundays.

·        Soft Running Trail Access: I am about a :20 drive to one which is a 9.5 mile hilly loop (Waterfall Glen), and about :15 drive to one with a bunch of flats plus a 1-mile hill (Greene Valley can’t find data on the hill but it’s pretty steep!)

Athletic Background

·        Pre-1982: nothing! I am a nerd with a Math degree

·        1982-1985: rollerskating about 40 miles per week

·        1989-1998: primarily strength training, modest cardio work

·        1998: Began running

·        2000: Began doing triathlons

Training Hours History (click on the picture to view large size)

 

Personal Records

·        Ironman 13:14 at Ironman Lake Placid 2009 (17 total Ironmans done; 4 or 5 of these were self-supported)

·        ½ Ironman 5:31 at Racine 2004

·        Ultraman Canada 2010 33:18:47 (wasn’t going for anything other than to finish)

·        Open Marathon: 4:20 Disney Marathon 2010 (the day after a 2:10 1/2 marathon at same venue as part of Goofy Challenge)

·        Most recent Ironman Cozumel 12/1/2013 in 14:05. Felt my performance was compromised as my hypothyroidism wasn’t being treated properly at the time

Current Training Cycle Objectives

·        The big goal: finish Ultraman Hawaii in November, 2016

·        Improve swim (this will be huge). Have access to local swim coach to facilitate this.

·        Have some fun at shorter (up to ½ IM) races during 2015 in order to regain speed and work my way back up to IM+ training.

·        Train at ½ IM level through May, 2015 (maybe longer)

·        Build IM fitness beginning May, 2015

·        Will need to establish qualifying race for Ultraman Hawaii—possibly Leadman 250, possibly a NothingMan (self-supported IM). Note that in 2009 to prepare for Ultraman Canada, I did a 4-day training block where Days 1 and 2 I did Olympic distance, Day 3 1/2 IM and Day 4 IM. I would like to do that again in August, 2015

·        Know that I can comfortably train about 10-12 hours across Monday-Friday (any more than that and I seem to fall apart) due to my job. Weekends are wide open. I probably now need the occasional rest day being a geezer!

·        Intend to continue strength training approximately 1:30-1:45 per week.

·        Prefer the following daily schedule off-season (October through March):

o   M: Swim, shorter run

o   T: Bike, up to 1:30

o   W: Swim, tempo run up to 1:15

o   Th: Bike, up to 1:30

o   F: Swim (longest one), shorter run

o   Sa: Long ride, possibly transition run

o   Su: Long run, optional recovery swim about :30

·        In-season (April-September) prefer the following daily schedule:

o   M: Swim, shorter run

o   T: Bike, up to 1:30

o   W: Swim, tempo run up to 1:15

o   Th: Long run up to 2:30

o   F: Swim (longest one), shorter run

o   Sa: Long ride 1, possibly transition run

o   Su: Long ride 2, optional recovery swim

I successfully trained to the above schedules from 2004-2013; seems to work with my job and other life aspects.

Well there it is. Please either contact me on Facebook or by commenting on this blog with candidates! This should be fun!

Ch ch ch Changes 2014 Version

Today in Chicago, David Bowie IS opens! I am so excited! There was an article describing the exhibit in this past Sunday's Chicago Tribune that has got me so excited to go, I can't tell you! In case you didn't know, back in my 20's, I was a bit punked out and Bowie was my favorite artist. I even had my hair cut like Ziggy Stardust. Back in those days, I lived in the city, and rollerskated for my exercise--40+ miles a week. I was in good shape from that plus a diet of tall boy Budweisers and many steaks. I kid you not. I also was a workaholic. But I rarely missed my evening skate. I'd skate in the dark if I had to, wearing a Walkman belted to my waist, playing cassette after cassette of Bowie, The Clash, The Police, Devo, etc. Good times!

Anyway, the purpose of this post is to recount some recent changes besides a meltdown earlier this year. In the process of taking some actual complete time off running (really just a few weeks), and then ramping back up slowly, my sciatica has resolved! I can sit in most normal chairs again without my ass hurting. Now in addition to a rest from running, in March I got a new car (I can't thank Mark enough for going with me to test drive and certify something he would approve). It's this Hyundai Veloster:

The color is called Vitamin C. I really like it! My old car was a 1999 Cougar, that I like as well, but it had bucket seats, which drove my sciatica nuts, even with me adding cushions and stuff. One of my new car criteria was NOT BUCKET SEATS! The new steed has lumbar support built in, and while I still get a twinge of the sciatica driving, I've made it on a few 3 hour trips just fine. So I know the new car seat setup is helping.

I've been doing more squats and lunges in the last 2 years then I'd been doing for years. No harm can come of that! This may be why my upper legs and butt have grown a bit. I still comfortably wear size 2 or 3 pants (they are still a bit loose in the waist, yay!). Still, I have some that are closer to a size 0 that are tight. I need to work harder on that.

What else changed? I decided to stop dying my hair blonde. I just decided I didn't want to keep putting chemicals on my head (I get enough from the air, thank you!). It was really odd at first, because I'd forgotten just how dark my hair is, and I wondered how much gray hair I have. Turns out not too much, and I am now used to the dark color and actually like it! But who knows--I may, on a whim, decide to go back to blonde!

As much as I love to cook (when I have the time), I have not been doing much this year. For one, I don't need to eat like I have a tapeworm if I'm not training more than 14 hours per week (although I sort of am again). For two, I dislike washing dishes. Since I'm not riding so much, there are less bottles to wash, and I'm not drinking Endurox daily, so even less bottles, and this all adds up to not generating enough dirty dishes to make it worthwhile to use the dishwasher, so I do them by hand. My kitchen is less messy, too. I have become perfectly OK having some lean protein and a salad for dinner, and despite that I am back in decent shape again, with aging, my metabolism is just not where it once was (that plus the hypothyroidism).

Oh yeah that--the hypothyroidism--I guess it's "fine" for now in terms of being regulated. I have flashes of the "extra perkiness" I had grown accustomed to, aka the Crackheadedness, aka what I was told the other day by a friend was me "living at light speed." Really? Is that what I was doing? That's an interesting way to put it. Hey--it was totally fun!

I have noticed over the last 8 weeks (where I've been at 15+ hours/week) that my metabolism has gone back into near overdrive, which makes me happy, because it means I can (and SHOULD) eat MORE CARBS! Still I am watchful about my carb intake because I would like to drop 2-3 lbs. of fat. Yes, I'm vain that way, yes I know it makes people crazy when I call myself fat, but if I don't care about 2 lbs. then I won't care about 4 and so on. My knees and running will thank me for losing it.

In the midst of my mental turmoil, I am getting rid of possessions a little at a time whenever I am in position to look through stuff and make decisions. So while I thought I'd have my entire house cleared out by now (silly me!), I am at least in the MINDSET of getting it done.

I find that I am excited again about triathlon, and that even planning a few weeks worth of training for short races helps me to get my "fix" of planning leading to achievement. But in starting to feel fit and competent again, I find myself gravitating towards longer stuff. But I may have a solution: a 2-year plan to get to Ultraman Hawaii. I can finish out 2014 without going crazy on training, spend 2015 in a combination of becoming Ironman-fit while also doing a few shorter races, and then begin the big training push (assuming all the prior stuff goes well) during fall/winter 2015. I already know who I want on my crew if they are willing to make the sacrifice. Ultraman is $$$$, and I can't afford to foot the bill for crew (except some of it on the actual race days), and I'd want the crew members to be able to run with me on Day 3. It's a HUGE ask to be on a crew. It's as hard as doing the race!

Anyway, I like the idea that I am looking at a 2-year plan for Ultraman. I think that gives me some more "rest" time, plenty of time to plan for logistics (which all by itself is a huge undertaking), and time to change my mind. It just feels like something I MUST DO. That may be my OCD talking, but really, I was pretty bummed out in 2012 when I didn't do it then. I was OK with "just an Ironman" in 2013, but I never felt well enough prepared for Cozumel. Can a 60 year old Crackhead finish Ultraman Hawaii? We'll see. This could be the journey of a lifetime! So many things could go wrong along the way, but I am prepared for it now, I think. Just as a bad 2005 prepared me for the death of my Mom in 2006 and then Dad in 2007, so their deaths prepared me for the stress I undertook to get ready for Ultraman Canada in 2010, and now I've had another couple of years to grow more, get more in touch with myself, and understand that planning for another significant event at an advanced age will require me to have a ton of patience, compassion for myself and others, and get that mindset back that is my guiding strength.

First we begin small. Step 1 is to get the right foot able to run long distances with no pain (or minimal). That starts tomorrow (new, wider running shoes). Get back on the massage train (I quit for about 5 months and if I am going to "train" again, I need to get back on). Get my metabolic parameters measured so I can dial in my diet. Re-evaluate my strength program and make some changes. Do a 1/2 NothingMan in November. Get some swim coaching. Seek trusted help from a few friends. This time, I'm not doing this by myself!

I truly do welcome any and all takes on the above. I am finding out in dribs and drabs how some people view me, which I really shouldn't give a fuck about; however, I do find it helpful to a point, since I am sure that some of the "truths" about myself do, in fact, shine through transparently to others. So I ask all of you reading this to keep me honest and not be afraid to speak your mind. Instead of just cheering on my Cracktacular antics (because, hey! It's totally fun to watch someone living on the edge!), remember to look for the vulnerable human being inside here who needs people on her side as much as (if not even more than) "regular" people.