Is it really the end of March?

Good grief!  With every new blog post that I make, I end up apologizing for going completely MIA.  This time it was a month.  Even in my world of random blog posts, a month is just too long.

Quick recap on what's been going on.  I'll update with some photos in my next post:

1.  Scott completed the Gasparilla Distance Classic Half Marathon on February 28th.  He ended up with a nearly 6 minute PR on his previous half marathon which was only a mere 3 months beforehand.  Talk about being a VERY proud wife (and coach).  I love watching him excel!  My dear love has a very challenging work schedule to work around and honestly, I don't know how he is able to stay so mellow (yet still motivated) where training and racing are concerned.  It's a quality that I really envy.

2.  In early March we took an absolutely amazing vacation with our best friends, Jeff & Sondra, to Breckenridge, CO.  This was an action packed, dusk 'till dawn trip... and we loved every second of it.  We had lots of powder to ski/snowboard and snowmobile on, but the highlight of the trip for me was dog sledding!  Let me tell you, we weren't just along for the ride either.  Dog sledding is hard work. Actually, just about everything is hard work when you're at nearly 10,000 ft!!!

3.  I am continuing to work on painting our house and up next on the project list is the 'Man Cave.'  Scott  & I went to work on a plan for it yesterday and today I began paint sampling.

4.  In addition to moving on to another room, I've also taken up the challenge of growing (and not killing) some herbs.  I planted rosemary, basil, cilantro and flat leaf parsley.  I'm going to give them all of the love that I can.  We shall see.  I plan on taking before/after pics of them!

5.  Swim training has been slow.  I got back in the pool a bit later this year than I had hoped, but that's what happens when even FL is cold (and all of our pools are outdoors).  Despite that fact, I feel pretty good in the water.  Well enough to get through a half-iron.  My swimming goal for the year is not to try to see if I can produce faster splits, it's simply to work on body mechanics... with my main focus being on body rotation.  Doubling my yardage last year didn't improve my swim times at all, so I've got to break down my form and go from there.

6.  Cycling, on the other hand, has been great!  Scott and I are continuing to build our base in preparation for IMFL 70.3 in mid-May and I'm feeling better than ever on my bike (back on the little bike this year).  I did a lot of spin classes over the winter and two of our new instructors have been adamant about reminding us to keep our heels down and work on that upstroke.  This has been awesome for me because I have been a masher in the past... completely overworking my quads by trying to make the most of every downstroke.  I was very pleased with my ride this past weekend... and it was done in 15-20mph winds with gusts up to 25mph.  I was going so slow in parts that I thought I would come to a complete stop and fall over.  Last year I probably would have been lucky to average 16mph in those conditions, this past weekend I was at 17.2... and that was staying in zone 2!  Very pleased!

7.  I lost a lot of running base over the winter due to my ITB issues, but I have been very slowly trying to build it back up.  I can run long, if I run slow.  So that's my goal.  My focus for this year (since all I'm doing are 2 half-iron events) is 100% pacing.  My goal is to not blow myself up on the 56 mile bike and maintain a realistic pace for the run (which for me would be a 10:30 steady for the half-iron... not 9:15 here, 11:00 there... just 10:30 steady).  I learned a lot from Coach Jen and my experience at Augusta 70.3 last year and I'm going to take it to the bank!  I can run fast next year when it's all about sprints and olys... this year, I just want to get more familiar (and more comfortable) with the half-iron.

8.  Our first triathlon for 2010 is IMFL 70.3.  I am excited about this race, but b/c I live here and train here I am VERY respectful of the heat.  I've read a lot of race recap reports on IMFL 70.3 over at BeginnerTriathlete and it appears to me that most folks just do not respect how difficult this race is.  I think most folks register for this race and assume it's going to be an easy PR; hence, they hammer hard.  Yes, the course is flat with just a few Central FL rollers on the bike, but the swim is ack-worthy (I've already raced in this lake; it's a slow lake and the course is known for being long), the bike is 100% aero... no resting on downhills, and the run is about 80% on grass... in the middle of the day... in mid-May... with at least a 90F heat index by run time if there is no cloud cover.  As a friend of mine told me last year, IMFL 70.3 puts many athletes in the medical tent.  So, while I am excited, I remain respectful and would like to remain out of said tent.

Enough babble... pictures to come soon!