Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Cruises Are Fun, 2 Mile Runs Are Awesome, and Destination Races Are the Best

I’ve been a little MIA lately.  I left Thursday for a 3-night bachelorette cruise starting in Port Canaveral, FL with one stop in Nassau, Bahamas.  We were all well behaved.  I don’t think any of us exceeded 5 drinks in a day, but most days were only 1 or 2.  Of course, we ate like crazy.  I tried to make fairly healthy choices, but within an unlimited supply of ice cream and sweets in the cafeteria, I can only resist for so long.  And, then at breakfast and dinner when you can also eat as much as you want of whatever you want that’s on the menu.  I had some sort of fish for my main meal every night.  But, of course I had to get dessert too  J.  Oh well, I worked out Friday and Saturday on the ship, so at least I wasn’t a total bum.  Oh, and let me just say, it’s quite interesting trying to stay straight on the elliptical and even more so on the treadmill when the ship is swaying back and forth.  I did 30 minutes of cardio both days followed by about 45 minutes of weights.  Friday we were docked at the Bahamas and the day was pretty uneventful except for while we were at Senor Frogs for a quick snack and a drink.  There was a bachelor party there that were entertaining and at some points annoying and gross.  The guy getting married is from St. Pete.  Small world, right?  In case you’re unfamiliar with the Tampa Bay Area, St. Petersburg is about 45 minutes away from Tampa.  The one getting married was also the most annoying and gross.  He ate a huge piece of lettuce from one of our trays and was chewing it with his mouth open.  After he chewed it all up, he tried to spit it back out into the tray.  I kind of wanted to punch him right them.  I think Saturday was the best day.  We spent all afternoon lying out by the pool and the ship entertainment was great.  Also, that was when we discovered that they had Blue Moon on the ship.  Wish I would have known that sooner.  All in all, it was fun.  Not the best cruise experience I’ve ever had, but I was glad to hang out with my friends that I hadn’t seen in a while and just relax for a few days.  I was glad to be home on Sunday, though. 

My training plan had me do 2 miles yesterday.  And, compared to the rough 15 miler that Sarah and I did Monday morning, it was awesome.  I felt like I was flying.  Not because of speed.  It was at an 8:30 min/mi pace.  But, because my steps were so light and felt almost effortless compared to just about every run I’ve had over the last 6 months.  I got done and was ready to tackle the weights.  I started with pull ups and my bubble quickly burst.  I’ve gained 5 pounds since B2B.  My clothes are a little tighter but still fit comfortably.  But, I can really tell the extra weight is there with the pull ups.  I was able to complete 10 at my peak just before B2B.  Yesterday, I did 5.  Granted, it’s still better than none.  But, pull ups are so hard!  I dread doing them almost as much as doing abs.  Oh well.  I’m still happy about my 2 miler.  I’m not going to get upset about it.  I just need to start watching what I eat more closely.  My rest period is over and I need to be more conscious of that. 

Why are destination races great?  Because it gives you an excuse to travel to places that you want to go to and to places that you would never go to otherwise.  It allows you to get in a workout and then eat more of the local goodies that are available without feeling so bad about it.  The one I’m most excited about it is Windsor, California… Wine Country!  I found someone from one of the tri teams that I’m on to get in on the buy 1, get on 50% off deal for the Full Vineman being held on July 17, 2013.  It was great how it worked out.  I posted on the group pages on Facebook if anyone was interested in doing the race with me and gave the details.  Tanner responded within minutes with a “Yes!”, followed by a “I know you!”.  Turns out his girlfriend looked at my bike a few months ago to buy.  We haven’t seen or talked since then.  She didn’t end up buying my bike, but oh well.  I made sure to clear it with Daniel before I even posted the question and again before I registered.  I’m super excited about this destination race because 1) it’s a race that was on my to-do list.  I was planning on not doing any full distance races next year and had actually planned to do it in 2014.  But, that would put it right in the middle of the 2014 World Cup of which I have been instructed not to plan anything during  :), 2) it’s in Wine Country and this time I’m going to get to enjoy it.  Last time Daniel and I went we didn’t have enough time to go to even one vineyard, 3) it's before the September and October festivites that we missed this year because of Augusta and B2B of which Daniel wasn't very happy about, and 4) (this is the most improtant) it’s the week after my 30th b-day.  So, it’ll be a happy b-day to me!  It would be cooler if it was ON my birthday.  But, I'll take it. 

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