I've been on the non-generic Synthroid for 5 days, and I am optimistic that it is making a difference for me. My heart no longer feels jumpy 2 hours after I take the meds, and I just feel more "level." But as to how I should feel, I still have no clue. I am less than 4 weeks out from another Ironman, and while I have been able to execute most of the training in my plan, some of it has been at less intensity than I would prefer, and I couldn't tell you whether that's due to:
- Age. Yep, I got older. How the fuck did that happen?
- The underlying nature of hypothyroidism, whether or not medicated.
- The meds themselves
- I need to HTFU
- I really did get out of shape for over a year
So based on the above, I have no fucking expectations going into IMCOZ, because there are too many variables in play at the moment. That's OK, though--I am pretty sure I can finish the thing and not do too poorly. I am not sandbagging here, either! I know some people on the sidelines are thinking WTF she has trained like her usual beastly self, she ought to come out really well, and to you I would say why don't you try stepping into my shoes? Yes, I have retained this freakish ability to train a lot, and yes, I still enjoy it in a perverse way--the pain, the mental suffering, the stupid things that come up and my ability to get past them.
Just yesterday, for example, I didn't sleep enough, which I blame on the stupid time change. I had settled into waking up around 3AM, which is still a bit earlier than I would like, but even still, I would get so many things done in the wee hours. In case you are wondering, that is when I perform my coaching duties, clean my house (because if I wait until later in the day, I will be too tired and just go FUCK IT), wash the dishes, fix bottles for biking, catch up on email, write blog posts and generally organize myself. Anyway, my legs were also quite sore yesterday. From biking. See this last push has me biking 4 days straight, and none of it is what I would call easy. Plus I shelled myself a bit on Saturday with that 114 miles in 4:30--but I am also quite pleased that I did it!
So what did I do yesterday? I started out by raking my entire back yard, and I think that took about 1.5 hours. I tend to rake competitively, so it's like another workout in a way. I thought that might tire me out enough to make me go down for a short nap, which I attempted, but failed. I also felt nutritionally depleted, so after I raked, I ate another breakfast--2 eggs fried in butter with 2 slices of buttered toast. YUM! Then at about 11AM, I thought I'd eat lunch and have a beer and see if that would get me to nap, but again, I failed. But after laying in bed for maybe 20 minutes, I did seem to feel better (sometimes a beer "resets" my brain don't ask me why), so I got up and decided to motivate and go work out at the Y, since I needed just to be around other people, since I've been doing a lot of training in my house. I packed a Coke and a bottle of Cheaterade to fuel me for a 1:30 ride and :40 brick run.
Now, many people would have bagged their workouts given my lack of sleep and sore legs. And I get that. And there are times when I would make the call to bag it, too, but yesterday was not one of them, being close to the race, and with this and next week being the real tests of HTFU and final fitness building. Plus, in the back of my mind is always the thought that there will be periods during the race where I will feel this shitty, so might as well get used to it now!
I got on a Precor stationary bike, and predictably, didn't have much power, but I had enough for the circumstances, and the Coke helped the time pass quickly, but near the end, I began dreading the run. I just didn't think I'd be able to hack it, but I transitioned quickly (I wore my running shoes on the bike), and went to the indoor track, and figured I'd just start out nice and easy, see how I felt, and if I really felt too tired to keep going, it would be OK to stop.
My first mile was 10:05, which would be too fast for being in the race, but slow for me in training, but hey, I was running when I felt like shit, so I was OK with it. Without even feeling like I was pushing any harder, my second mile was 9:34, then 9:27, then the last one was 8:47! The entire time I was running, I kept thinking I will feel like this in the race, so just feel it and be OK with it. And I would say that during the 3rd mile, I began smiling and that old feeling of how cool is this came back to me and how awesome is it that I am fit enough to do this shit, and I knew I would finish the workout.
Of course, when I was done, I felt absolutely great, took the BEST SHOWER EVER (I was moaning in there, though because I was pretty wasted), then hit the sauna for some stretching, put on compression tights and headed back home to work some more.
After I was done working, I stretched some more, then I headed over to my friend's house down the street, as she'd invited me for dinner, how nice is that? We had a nice time talking about this and that and laughing, and I would have stayed longer, except for I was really tired. When I got home, I stripped, got in bed and passed out in like 2 seconds, and woke up right at 2AM because I had to poop, and this is what happens, and it's hard for me to go back to sleep after that. I tried, though, but I was glad I'd made it all the way to 2 (the former 3) without waking up once. So I know I will be a bit tired today, too, but I will get through it.
I am having some work done inside my house next week, and in preparation, I have to move things around in my bedroom, which means, you know, cleaning, too, and I'm getting there. Behind my big dresser, I found this:
On that note, today I swim 3500 and then run 1:10 later, and while I feel a little worked, I'm pretty sure I can HTFU and get through it just fine.
Have a great day!
