Where has the month of September gone??? For some odd reason, I’ve struggled to find the time to sit down and write! With the new fall season in full swing, these past few weeks have been a whirlwind! Everything from high school visits and college fairs, to adjusting to my increase in hours of Iron man training, to trying to squeeze in every chance to visit with family and friends, and then find some “me” time…whew! Sometimes there is just not enough time in the day, BUT I always seem to manage to get everything done, I guess it’s the extended grace God grants on my life! So thankful for it!
As promised, here’s a quick update on my latest race…..Sept, 11, 2011 I conquered my 2nd Half Iron man distance at REV 3 Cedar Point. Going into this race, I was nervous. Maybe it was the fact that Eagleman was my first 70.3 distance, so my goal was to go out and enjoy it. However, with this race I placed some added, unnecessary pressure on myself to try and beat my time by a certain number. Probably not the smartest way to approach things being that this was only my 2nd HIM distance. Oh, well we all like to push ourselves right?
Race day!
Swim: The weather was perfect! Swim start air temp was in the low 60’s and partly sunny skies. I was worried that with the storms they were having a few days leading up to the race, that the water would be choppy, but it ended up the exact opposite! The conditions were comparable to a lake! With the sun being the only factor, really, I managed to knock off 7 minutes from my last swim time! So I was happy, although, I am still getting use to the open water swim which is a whole lot different from the pool!
Bike: Still my weakest out of the three. The course was one big loop, fairly flat with a few rolling hills. This is where I had failed in my nutrition. Without going into too much detail, it came down to me not drinking enough. I set out with 3 infinite bottles on my bike and intended to pick up another bottle along one of the fluid stations, but for some reason, I didn’t consume all of them. I guess, going in, I felt good on the bike and maybe because it was soo cool out, I deceived myself in thinking I was okay. As soon as I ended this part of the race, I could tell I was more fatigued than usual.
Run: The run was one loop out and back, with some rolling hills the first and last 1 ½ mile stretches. Surprisingly I felt strong and my legs were great for the first 5 miles, averaging 7:15-7:30pace. All the sudden, out of nowhere, passing mile marker 5 I cramped up and started falling back; before I knew it I was throwing up on someone’s front lawn (Sorry for the details). This was my very first vomiting experience during a run. It was soo embarrassing, but afterwards, I felt a thousand times better. At this point now I had nothing in me to finish the last 8 miles, other than Gatorade and water at the aid stations. My plan was to stick it out to the end. Around mile 12 my Garmin died but I knew it didn’t matter too much at this point. This all attributed to my lack of calories in on the bike. Again, another HUGE learning experience. My overall time was 5:40:37.
My next race is IM Florida in 6 weeks!!!!! I’m soo excited! Can’t believe it's soo close!! Stay tuned!
Things I am looking forward to in October: My brother’s wedding in 3 weeks, in New Jersey!!!! Helping my sister find a wedding dress for her big day in August! Laura’s birthday!! Fall weather, pumpkin soup, pumpkin everything :) decorating, FB games, Britt Nicole concert with Victoria and Jaime, FINALLY being able to use the fireplace, last few weeks of IM training (Matt and I just joined Pgh Tri Club) and falling more in love with my hubby! Soo many fun things to look forward too!!:) Other than summer, fall is my second favorite time of the year.
Yes, it is true! I FINALLY broke down and decided to give this “blog-thing” a try! It was on my heart all summer to start, but never seemed to WANT to sit down and put in the time! Well I figured with summer quickly coming to a close, and with a new season upon us, it felt like the right time to put something together! So here it goes…..better late than never right?
So…why blog? Well I felt the urge inside to want to share what’s on my heart lately. It’s also nice to be able to look back and see where you were and how far you’ve come over the years. GOD has blessed my life in soo many ways! HE is my #1 source of everything! Without God, I wouldn’t be half the woman I am today. MATT, my incredible husband; I couldn’t have even dreamed of someone more perfect for me. He is my bestest friend, supporter, lover, encourager, coach and teammate. I love going through this so-called “journey of life” with him. Everyday continues to get better and better. Marriage truly is heaven on earth when God leads you to the right one!
A little bit of background about myself:
I have lived in Pittsburgh my entire life. Raised by two incredible parents in a Godly home, with a younger bro and sis. I attended North Allegheny HS, and then went on to Westminster College where I earned my degree in PR and Communications. Within a few months after graduation, Sept. of 2004, I lost my mom to cancer. She had a brain tumor that metastasized to her lungs. She fought an incredible battle, never ever complained of her circumstance. She praised God, stood on his promises, never wavering. She was and still is an incredible inspiration to me, a Godly example of a true mother, wife and friend. She may have left us here on earth, and is deeply missed, but she is in a much better place in Heaven. I can only hope to one day be half the woman she was here. I will never forget her incredible legacy she left behind. My mom is in my future and look forward to seeing her one day!
Upon graduation, I landed a job working in real estate (def not my forte) and then quickly stumbled upon Robert Morris University, where I became an Undergrad Admissions Counselor. I LOVE my job! I LOVE higher edu! You have an opportunity to meet LOTS of interesting people, to say the least. Knowing that I have the opportunity to counsel students through the admissions process, whether or not they chose RMU, is such a rewarding experience.
Shortly after landing my new job, I ran into my hubby, literally! We re-connected at the Pittsburgh Great Race back in the day, he somehow found me at the end of the race, in which I beat him! LOL…And the rest was history! Matt and my brother, played soccer at Carnegie Mellon University, so I actually sat at many games cheering him on, never knowing I would one day marry him! So crazy how God works!
As far as what I like to do for fun, I have a HUGE passion for running. I ran for quite some time, UNTIL Matt introduced me to triathlons-THIS YEAR!! I had NO desire to want to bike whatsoever. I was on a bike maybe 3 times my entire life, so I knew it would be a challenge. I have a swimming background, coming from many years spent taking swim lessons as a young tyke, then moving on to swim team throughout most of my middle school career. BUT I LOOOOVE challenges! SOOO I decided to give this “Triathlon thing” a go! I got my first bike (Felt) in October. So far this year, I raced my first sprint tri (Edinboro) in June, the following week, my first Half-IM-(Eagleman) and my first Olympic distance-(PGH Tri) in July! I absolutely LOVE it!! I am hooked!! I am racing another Half IM this coming weekend-Rev 3 Tri-Cedar Point! I am soo excited! My 2nd Half IM distance this year! Race reports here we come! I also LOVE spending time with my family and serving at my church. AND I have a slight obsession with shoes and jewelry but what girl doesn't?
I am looking forward to seeing where and what God has in store for me this new season!
