While listening to A Life in Parts, read by author Bryan Cranston, he said he always gives the same advice to aspiring actors before they start a big job, “Get your house in order.” Cranston means structuring your personal life, clearing your mind of noise and mitigating outside stressors so you can completely focus on your goal. This past week I have been getting my house in order so I can focus on my singular goal of qualifying for the USA Triathlon Team in 2017.

Playtime is now over.

I need to get back to this game face…

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WEEK OF NOVEMBER 28, 2016

RUNNING

My runs, as you know, have been feeling a little “off.” Since I’ve been getting my house in order, I needed to get my ass in gear and do a lot more stretching, rehabilitation work (I’ve been in PT enough times to know what to do!) and start each run with a dynamic warm-up and then a stretch and foam roll. No excuses.

Guess what? My runs have improved. Shocking.

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Since I’m in the pool almost everyday now, I use the sauna as a warm-up area and then do my dynamic warm-up in there before I run. It’s been working like a charm.

Tuesday – 6 mile run after swim with 15 x 15 second pick-ups throughout

Thursday – 6 miles after swim with 2 mile warm-up, half-mile @6:30 pace, 2 miles @7:30 pace, half mile @6:30 pace

Sunday – 4 miles easy after bike

Total = 16 miles

SWIMMING

For some reason I thought it would be a good idea to meet with my coach for a swim evaluation on the Monday after Thanksgiving. I was nervous heading into the pool but happy to see CRS. I had been having shoulder pain on my right side and she immediately knew the cause and, even pinpointed the area of pain with her finger. She really is a genius.

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Sipping on some Tailwind in the pool while listening to my WaterFi – life is good.

She made some small tweaks to my stroke, head position and core and I actually was able to execute the changes and improve my stroke on the spot. This is the first time I have ever walked away from a pool session with her feeling more empowered than confused. I AM A SWIMMER! <  – – I yelled this in the pool area after we were done. And yes, even after all this time I have to reaffirm this in my brain!

Monday – meet up with CRS for swim | 1800 yards

Tuesday – 400s for form | 2,200 yards before run

Total = 4,000 yards

CYCLING

I was finally able to get to my local bike shop, get another tube and fix my flat tire, despite my kids having three half-days this week.

I was mostly on the trainer due to time constraints from the half-days as well but, I really don’t mind the trainer and it’s helping me mentally focus since you can’t really do that on the road. I know my outdoor riding days are numbered so I’m hoping to get at least a few more in before the snow!

I’ve also been throwing in strength work, in the form of Barre and whatever is laying around the house, after my cycling workouts…

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Wednesday – 1 hour ride with 10 x 30 seconds in Z4 and then off to Barre | 14 miles

Friday – 1 hour ride with 6 x 5 minutes in Z3 (grueling!) with core work afterward | 15 miles

Sunday – 1 hour 2 x 20 @88% + 15 @110% cadence work before run | 15 miles

Total = 44 miles

CROSS TRAINING

I’m adding this in because CRS gave me this specific workout called The Craig “Crowie” Core. It’s fantastic and I highly recommend it for runners and triathletes!

FUEL

Look out world – – I have been cooking! I tried two different Pinterest recipes this week and both were a hit! Best of all, they were both super easy to make. Who am I kidding? If they were not easy, they would not have been made!

Pictured are the Stuffed Peppers (obviously) and I also made easy Chicken Tacos. YUM!

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I also joined the party and bought Run Fast, Eat Slow along with the rest of the running world. I’m tired of seeing photos of mouth-watering muffins at Happy Fit Mama and Fuel Your Future with Tina and not being able to indulge. If you can’t beat ’em…

I’ll report back on my findings.

THINGS I LOVE

My coach knowing exactly what I need, when I need it.

CRS showed up to the pool with this…

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She has no idea that I’m a Momentum Jewelry Ambassador, and just thought it was the perfect gift. She was right.

THINGS I DON’T LOVE AS MUCH

Did I mention the half-days for the kids? Seriously three days of the boys being out of school at noon was a tough pill to swallow.  I’ve been overrun with writing assignments, holiday planning and getting back to two-hour training days, just at the wrong time.

This is the only way I get things done and I have not one speck of guilt about it.

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I’m sure he’s on a very educational site that is expanding his mind and teaching him to be a better person.

READING

As always, there is an abundance of great reads!

I’m currently reading Megyn Kelly’s book Settle for More. Although I’m not a huge fan of Kelly’s, I’m getting a lot out of the book. A friend suggested I read it since Kelly lost her dad around the same age I lost my mom. Kelly’s writing on her refection of that time, describing exactly the pain and the coping mechanisms she devised, really rang true for me.

There are other great lessons too about not having to be a genius to rise to the top of your field (she went to Albany Law School and had many setbacks in her career as a lawyer), to never give up and not take shit from basically anyone….like say someone who basically calls you clueless because you have a menstrual cycle and then terrorizes you on Twitter with a merry band of sexist morons. I’m just guessing…

 

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Before anyone thinks for one more minute about how to burn off calories from holiday parties, please (PLEASE!) read what my very wise and very wonderful friend Sarah has to say on the topic of food and our complicated relationship with it:

Here’s Why You Should Indulge This Holiday Season | Women’s Running

“What if instead of trying to avoid indulging during the holidays you changed the way you looked at food in general? Instead of categorizing foods as “good” and “bad,” “clean” or “unclean,” what if you simply looked at all food as potential fuel and accepted life with its ebbs and flows, instead of a consistent progression along a linear path?” Sarah Canney

RANDOM PICTURE OF THE WEEK

My mother is rolling in her grave. I would have never been allowed to wear clothing like this to meet Mr. Claus. But, here are my happy children in the clothes (and other randomness) they selected for the day. My only defense is I did not know about Santa’s presence…he just showed up!

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[Tweet “The Rundown has big #goals for 2017, great #reads and coping mechanisms for the #holidays”]

How was your week?

Are you getting your “house” in order for anything?

 

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