Take 2: Volunteering at IMTX

Last Saturday was Ironman Texas in the Woodlands.  Last year I volunteered at the finish line, but this year I wanted to volunteer on the course to support the runners, not just the ones to were finishing.

For those who don't know, Ironman kicks off at 7 am sharp.  The participants have 17 hours to complete a 140.6 mile course of swimming, biking, and running.  2.4 miles of swimming, 112 miles on a bike, and a full 26.2 marathon of running.  Yikes!!!

My friend Katie does a boot camp twice a week that all the dues money goes towards a non profit that raises money for various non profits.  The manager of that non profit signed up to be the captain of aid station #3 on the run course.  I signed up a few months ago when they were just starting to get volunteers.  Our aid station had tons food and drinks that the runners could have on each of the 3 laps of the course.

My shift started at 2:30, but the traffic was so bad that I didn't get there until about 2:40 pm.  My friend Katie and Michelle were both working that day too, so I just found them and started working at their station.  At first I was helping put ice in cups for the runners, but then moved to the drink Perform station.

Our station had:
Cold sponges (a pool of ice and water was keeping them cool)
Ice
Water
Perform
Gu gel
Gu Chomps
Bananas
Salty chips (I think they were plain potato chip kind)
Bananas
Watermelon
Bonk Bites (no one wanted these! :/ )
Pretzels (those went fast)
Oranges
licorice
Broth (after it was dark)
and maybe other stuff, but I wasn't at the food station.  I only remember what I heard them say

My old running coach, Alain, was completing the Ironman that day, so we were on the lookout for him (Matt and Aly were at the same station too) and we all cheered him on when he came by our station.  He looked like he was hurting, but kept moving and finished!

I ended up staying past 6:30 when my shift ended.  Dawn (the captain) needed more people and asked if I could stay longer.  I told her I could stay until about 9 pm when I had to go back to the IAA fundraiser to help clean up.

All in all, it was a wonderful day and I was so inspired!!!  I have had it in the back of my mind that I wanted to do an Ironman, but Saturday clenched it.  I had flashbacks of mile 22ish of my marathon and I knew that I could do it if I trained.  I have to save up the $$ first though, the registration fee alone is around $700!  That doesn't include a coach, bike, shoes, etc.  Luckily, the IMTX course is in my town so I wouldn't have to worry about the travel costs that some do.  Last year I was inspired, but this year it was clenched that I want to do one!!!!!

Watch this video, you will be inspired too.

Volunteering at the Rodeo Houston

Wow!  My final shift at the HLSR for the Special Children's Committee was last night and boy was it a long week!  I had a ton of fun and it was super rewarding, but it was exhausting.

I had to volunteer 5 times total (one being the Top Hands Horse Show), 3 concert nights and 1 day tour.

The HLSR is a huge event and has over 28,000 volunteers (plus a small staff) that puts on the rodeo each year and gives out a ton of money in scholarships.

The committee I volunteer for is the Special Children's Committee, which hosts mentally and physically handicapped kids and adults (plus chaperones) during day tours and concerts.  During the concerts we have a special entrance and special seats reserved for them.  We greet them off the bus, walk them to their seats, give them popcorn and drinks, and dance with them and help them back to their vehicles when the concert is over.  Normally I just helped them to their car, but during my break last night (Jake Owen Concert) I stayed with them and danced.  I had hte most fun!  I 'slow danced' in the aisle with a few of the kids and when they went to leave, I was going to shake their hands, but two of them kissed me on my cheek.  It was so cute! :)  I am so thankful that I was able to be a part of this committee this year.  It was a blessing to hang out with them!

My day started super early, so I of course had to get some coffee when I got to the park.  We had a concert the night before (REO Speedwagon) and I didn't get home until past midnight.  The next day (Tuesday) I woke up to my annoyingly cute alarm to get dressed and head to Reliant.  I knew I would be there all day, so coffee was a must!

On Tuesday (typing this out of order), we had a day tour with the kids. They came on buses and we escorted them throughout the rodeo to see the different animals (petting zoos and attractions) and we also gave them lunch.  There is section with pig races that the kids all loved.  They have four sections and each section has a colored flag.  Whatever section you are in, you cheer that pig on during the race (I think my groups section was orange).  They would tell you about each of them and how fast they were, then they would race down a shoot (looking for food I'm sure!).  The kids would cheer and cheer for there little pig.  It was sweet to watch.

About 1 pm all of the groups headed back to their buses to head home for the day.  My sister was supposed to bring my nephew to the carnival around 3 pm, so I went to hang out with one of my friends who was volunteering too.

Laura and Cole got there and we bought some carnival tickets.  We rode the slide and Cole loved it.  I swear, that kid is fearless. He rode tons of rides (well, as many as $20 worth of tickets gets you, LOL) and then we went inside to look at the animals and to eat lunch.  I wanted to get some fried food, but I was good and didn't (I still have over a week though!).  While Laura was in line for the bathroom, Cole wanted to ride the escalator over and over and over and over and over again.  We shouldn't have bought carnival tickets, we could have just stuck him on that thing and he would have been happy. I couldn't say no to this cute face. :)

 Part of the rodeo is art work that students submit.  They were all wonderful and some of them go for a lot of money at auction.  I love this pig one!  I do not know what the different ribbons mean though.  I know they are different prizes, but I am not sure what is the top prize and I didn't see a sign, but I could have missed it.

So overall I was at the rodeo from 4:30 pm-12:30 pm on Monday, 8 am-9:30 pm on Tuesday and 5 pm til 1:30 pm on Wednesday.  So tired, but it was super fun and worth it!  Tonight is the Veronica Mars premier at AMC in Sugarland!!  Can't wait.

Volunteering at Ironman Texas 2013

On Saturday I traveled to the Woodlands to volunteer at the Ironman Texas 2013 finish line.  I originally wanted to be at the finish line when my friend Debra crossed, but she was injured about a month ago so she was not able to race this weekend.  I had so much fun volunteering that I might make it a yearly event…unless of course I decide to actually get off my booty and complete one myself! :) hahahaha.

My shift was from 1:30-5:30 pm to catch the athletes when they cross the finish line.  I had the hardest time parking so I was afraid that I would be late to my shift, but I got there right on time.  We got a free shirt when we checked in, and then we just all sort of hung out for a bit.   They gave us instructions on what to do, then let us take a break for about 45 minutes.  We hadn’t done anything to take a break from, but I think there wasn’t much for us to do so we just sort of hung out and cheered for the runners as they passed. 

At around 3 pm we all stood in line to start catching the athletes as they came in.  I was about 5 in line to catch someone, but there were 6 people that were designated to catch the top finishers out of the male and females.  Someone in the top 5 of each category would be drug tested for illegal substances, but the top 5 didn’t know which one would be picked.  So whatever the special catcher’s numbered athelete was, they would stand in line ahead of us to take them directly to get tested.   I’m sure the #1 person is always tested (both male and female) but I am not sure the other numbers that were tested. 

The first finisher was a guy from Great Britain.  We kept getting updates that he was 3 miles away and 1 mile away, then he was rounding the finish shoot.  It was pretty cool seeing him cross.  I think they said it was the first time he has ever won an Ironman.  After he crossed he gave an interview and they asked him about his race and everyone was congratulating him.

While I was waiting for my first ‘catch’ I saw the first woman come across the finish line.  Her name was Rachel and she was a rockstar!  She hardly looked like she had just completed an Ironman!  After she crossed she went back and hi fived the spectators down the finishers shoot.  She seemed really sweet.  Afterwards she came back to wait for the 2^nd place female to cross and was just sitting there playing on her iphone like it was no big deal.  I would be asleep if that was me, not playing on my phone nonchantly…ROCKSTAR!! 

My first catch was a guy from Columbia named Andres who came in as the #9 male (I think that’s what his placement was), he was a professional athlete.  I walked him to get his shirt, gave him some water, made sure he was ok to walk and let him go.  He didn’t speak English very well I don’t think so I couldn’t talk to him as much as I did the others. 

I caught 6 or 7 people total during my shift.  At the end of my shift my friend Cindy and her husband came to the finish line to see if they needed any extra help.  I ended up staying with them for an extra hour before heading back to my side of town.  I had so much fun volunteering and I can’t wait to do it again!

Bridgeland Triathlon Recap

Note:  My phone broke early Sunday morning so I only have the picture of my medal for this post, which makes me sad!  Boo! 

On Sunday I completed my first triathlon…and probably my last! Haha.  The Bridgeland Triathlon had around 1,700 people were competing in the race and it was interesting to say the least.  It is really hard training for three sports at once, and on top of that you have to increase your distance for a marathon. Marathon training had really taken over my training (and life!) and I felt that it was more important as a long term goal to practice for it instead of a triathlon. 

I laid my stuff out the night before so I could leave first thing in the morning and also so I would not forget anything.  I woke up around 4 am (Jabba was excited to eat an hour early) and made my oatmeal while I was getting dressed and set it next to my stuff so I could eat it while on the road.  After a bit of a struggle I put my bike in the trunk/backseat of my car (side note: taking off a wheel from a bike is a pain in the booty!) along with my bag and oatmeal.  The drive was about 40 minutes and I got to the race site at about 5:45 am.  I wasn’t sure what the parking would be like and since this was my first triathlon I didn’t want to be late.  After having some help putting my wheel back on my bike I walked the transition area to get body marked and put my stuff in my area.  I also went over to the bike repair station and they helped me tune up my bike.  I met some great ladies that I racked my bike near and we walked over to the swim start together.

Swim-550 meters (19:32.9)

We were set to start at 7:33 am, but we didn’t end up going until at least 7:50 am.  I am not a very fast swimmer, but I finished!  I got kicked in the head many times, but I also kicked people accidently myself.  I only mildly freaked out in the water once and held onto a lifeguards kayak.  I floated on my back multiple times and just backstroked it out.  I only got to practice twice in a lake (once at 288 lake and once at the Bridgeland lake during the clinic) and I hated my gym pool (it was always dirty) so I didn’t practice swimming very much.  I exited the water and looked for my Mom, but I didn’t see her.

Transition (3:25.9)

I ran down the chute dripping wet and clothes clinging to me.  I finally found my bike and wrapped a towel around me while I put my socks, shoes, and helmet on.  I don’t have bike shoes, so I just put my running shoes on and got my bike off the rack. 

Bike-13 miles (51:01)

I exited transition and hopped on my bike at the orange line and was on the road!  I turned on Fry Road and saw my Mom and yelled hi, she said they were leaving since it was so hot.  I am glad I got to see her at least.  I started pedaling down the road, and pedaled, and pedaled, and pedaled.  My A.D.D. was really losing interest fast in this entire bike thing so I found other ways to entertain myself until I got done.  Boy, biking was boring!  I won’t do a MS-150 because I can only imagine how bored I would get. LOL . Props to everyone who does that all the time. I also only practiced biking a total of 3 times, once was a 4 mile ride, the next was 13 miles, and then a one miler once I got the new bike I borrowed.  Sad, but true. 

Okay, I am known for saying some t.m.i. stuff on my blog so here it is!  My ‘lady bits’ were hurting so much from that stupid bike.  I kept having to stand up and pedal because it hurt!  I am still sore even though I had one of those special bike seat covers.  Biking is not comfortable! 

Transition (2:20.3)

I hopped off the bike after 13 miles and my legs felt like lead.  I had heard that they were supposed to feel like bricks, and did they ever!  I could barely walk it was so weird. All I had to do in transition was put the bike and helmet up and I was ready to go.  I also drank a bit from my water bottle because I didn’t have one on the bike itself.  To help my legs adjust I walked out of transition to the run to give my legs some time to adjust.

Run-3 miles (41:37.4)

I brought my water belt with me on the run, but with my clothes still wet it kept slipping off of my and got more and more annoying!  I almost ditched it at the one mile mark, but thought that wouldn’t be good (or polite! Don’t mess with Texas y’all) so I just dealt with it.  By this time I was so stinkin’ tired that all I wanted to do was walk the entire time.  I decided to do a walk/run strategy though so I could still finish within a decent time frame (decent on my standards).  I ran into one of my friends that I had met at the clinic the week before and I stayed with her the rest of the time.  They were handing out sponges at one water stop that I put down my shirt to cool off-it was HOT by this time of day.  The water stops had water, Gatorade, and ice at them and some people from the neighborhood had water soakers or water hoses for us to run through.  The cold water felt SO good!

About a half a mile from the finish line we were told that we were almost there by one of the families in the neighborhood.  My friend that I was running with said, well of course we were going ot finish since it was longer to turn around! Haha.  (I just thought that was really funny..was I delirious or did you think that was funny too?)

We saw the finish line up ahead and I sprinted to it!  I was sooooooo glad to be done.  Overall my time was 1:57.57.

Finish line and after race celebration

They ran out of water at the finish line and in the food line.   I understand it is hard to predict food levels that athletes will eat but it's still no fun to have no water at the end.   For such a big race they need to calculate the numbers correctly or at least save some supplies for the slower people.  The women’s waves all go last so of course we are shut out of water/food after finishing after all of the men.  (edit:  I did fill out the race survey and the race director emailed me directly about the lack of water at the end.  He was very professional and explained the situation.  He listened to my concerns and worked with me to find a solution for their next race.  I think that is very professional on his part).

The next day

After I got home I took a shower and went straight to bed and slept for 3 hours.  I got up on Monday morning to go to work , but by the time I got there I was feeling even worse than Sunday.  I went home about 11:30 am to rest for the day and drink lots of liquids.  I was dehydrated and it was not fun.

Will I do another triathlon?  Probably not, I have had my fill of them.  I loved the bling I got though, it was super nice!

Olympics!

The Olympics are here, the Olympics are here!!!  I love the Olympics if you can't tell, and I look forward to them for four years.  I do believe that this is the last time we will see that hottie named Michael Phelps grace our televisions half naked in a speedo. Sigh.

Personally, I love watching the swimming and gymnastics, but this year I am excited to watch the triathlons! I of course am competing in one August 5th so I need some inspiration.
 
Can you tell who Jabba is rooting for?

Strong Body, Ageless Body DVD Review

Strong Body, Ageless Body by Erin O’Brien purchased from Amazon.com

Time:

45 minutes total or you can just do specific parts of the DVD

Equipment needed:

Set of hand weights (any weight-I started with 3 lbs, but should have moved up to at least 5.  Erin uses 9 lb weights)

Yoga mat or towel (if you are on carpet you don’t need one)

Water (not really equipment but she does allow a water break)

Overall:

I really like this workout DVD!  It is hard enough that you ‘feel the burn’ but not too difficult to where you feel like you are going to pass out and it is only 45 minutes long so you really feel like you have been working.  The DVD has lots of different moves where you work your entire body, not just one portion; however it does not have any cardio (other than doing the moves quickly).  The studio where she does the routine seems to be at a house so it’s not a ‘typical’ workout set (which I liked!) and the music didn’t seem as loud as some DVD’s out there. I also liked that the DVD showcased only her and not two or three other super muscular, “I hate any food but protein and despise cupcakes” kinds of people.  The DVD was just her in her home (I’m assuming it’s her home) and you, making it feel like a one-on-one personal training session.  The menu on the DVD has an option where you can go through the entire routine, or just do one section and stop.  This way you don't have to fast forward to get to what you want.

The instructor:

I hadn’t heard of Erin O’Brien before I purchased the DVD, but she was great.  She is great at explaining the moves and lets you know what is good or bad form so you can be sure not to hurt yourself.  Sometimes I had to laugh at her facial expressions when she says ‘you can do it’ with the utmost sincerity.  She is quick to move, has lots of energy, and is overall adorable!  She promises not to say awesome again at one point in the DVD, but then says it again later-I actually would have never noticed her saying it until she pointed it out.  I think it’s nice that she made a point not to be that annoying trainer in her workout DVD.  She has an Earthy but not hippie vibe to her, and she seems to really care about you and women everywhere, encouraging them to ‘be strong’.

Daily Review:

Day 1-(Wednesday) I didn’t realize until halfway through that the exercises on the top right of the screen were harder than the ones she was doing (side note-on Day 4 I noticed the box has ‘harder version’ written underneath it. Haha!).  Usually the trainer does the harder exercises the entire time on the main shot, and then the small shot (or person in the background) does the original or modified version. This video was opposite so I got confused a bit.  I am surprised that I actually sweated as much as I did today!  There really isn’t any cardio in this video, but I was sweaty.

Day 2-(Thursday) Today the exercises felt easier, except for the dreaded pull your knees in and sit up routine.  Still don’t like them! I felt a bit sore today in my upper arms and also my thighs, but overall I felt good.  I actually did all of the modifications in the top right of the screen the entire time today. I realized today that the office where I do my workouts was a bit stuffy, so that might be why I was so sweaty at the end. I need to bring a fan to put in there with me.  I watched another portion of the DVD with her bio in it and noticed that her husband is a famous actor from Desperate Housewives! 

Day 3-(Friday) Good workout today!  I felt like it should be longer, but the 45 minutes whizzed by.

Day 4-Skipped Monday (feeling blah) and today was great!  Each time I get better and better at the exercises.  I have been doing the DVD with 3lb weights (all I had!) but I just purchased some 5lb weights and will try and remember to bring them in tomorrow.

Day 5-(Monday)This is my last review day, but I know I will keep doing this DVD since I loved it so much!!  I didn’t bring heavier weights to work with me, but today I felt it!  I guess it was because I skipped so many times I had to start back at square one.  I did bring a fan in the office with me, but I still sweat!

Lunch time workout

Last week I came to the realization that I sort of waste my lunch hour at work. I either run errands (which isn’t that wasteful), read a book, or chit-chat in the lunch room upstairs. I decided that since I am training for my triathlon and my marathon that I need to step it up and not waste an entire hour out of my day.

What did I decide to do?  Workout during lunch!  I tried running a few weeks ago and just about DIED!  It was as so hot out….nix running in the heat of the day.  On the 15^th floor of our building there is a gym, but the equipment is older and I usually am not good with free weights at the gym and I despise treadmills…nix on the upstairs gym.

Then I thought about it and decided to bring my laptop here and do a workout dvd.  Brilliant!  Well, where can I do a workout dvd?  On my floor there is an empty office at the end of the hall (for now) so I asked my boss if I can use it during lunch with the door shut.  He said I could and yesterday I brought all my stuff to workout.

Here is my setup.  There isn’t that much room in the empty office but if I move out the other chairs I could have more room (no need to-I don’t do karate!).  I set up my laptop on the table and workout in front of it.  Do you like my FLAMINGO (!!) bag with my name on it?!  I am working on strength training so most of my DVD’s have some sort of weight involved.  These are three lb. weights but I am planning on bringing my 5lb. weights soon.

I am going to try and switch it up with different DVD’s that I have at my house and I am actually going to start reviewing the different DVD’s that I have bought.  Look for that soon!!  This DVD is called Strong Body, Ageless Body (bought from Amazon) and I loved it!  I will be doing a review soon (I want to complete the DVD several times before I review it completely).

After I get done I just put the DVD and weights in the cabinet (I need to bring my yoga mat from my car) and I am done.  Simple.

I don’t get overly sweaty, but I do put body splash on me after I change (just in case!).  So far this is working for me.  When we hire another person I will either have to stop, find another place, or hopefully it will be cooler so I can go running. 

What sort of things do you do for a daily workout?  Do you try and if it in before, during, or after lunch?

What’s next?

I went ahead and took the plunge…I registered for a TRIATHLON!  The Bridgeland Triathlon on August 5th to be exact. ;)

I know, I know, bikes just about kill me but I decided that I have just over 2 months to train for this thing and I will do it!  I am actually really excited. J

Now, I will tell you that I almost didn’t register because of one detail.  They make ‘fluffy’ girls/guys go into a different category called the Athena division. :/

Now, I am sure when they created it they had a positive spin in mind.  I know that larger people can’t quite compete with the skinny witches out on the course; however it does not make you feel good to be in a different division! 

I almost didn’t register but then I decided that the race wasn’t to show anyone anything or to compete against anyone, it was to compete against myself!  Who cares what category I am in?  My goal is to finish that race strong (and get bling!).  I heart race bling. J

I have decided I am going to rock out that dumb category.  My training plan is great, but I will need to tweak it a bit because I am also going to start marathon training in mid July...YIKES! 

So you guys have to help me become more accountable with my training plan and eating healthy!!  I mean it (PLEASE!).  I will update you on the progress.