A Pledge.

I, Meagan Timney, hereby vow to abstain from chips, sugary soda, ice cream and chocolate from today, May 30, 2006, until September 1, 2006, otherwise known as Triathlon Racing Season.

Rules:
- Popcorn may be substituted for chips provided it is air popped with minimal amounts of butter. No movie popcorn.
- Diet soda is allowed.
- Sherbet and frozen yogurt may be eaten in lieu of ice cream, as long as they are fruit based flavours.

Exceptions:
- I will adhere to these rules with the exception of Race Days, when I will be allowed to eat/drink as much (insert type of junk food, pop) as I wish after the race until the time I go to bed that evening.

You heard it here first. This is going to be really tough. Cross your fingers for me.

---

Today's Workout
Sport: Run
Type: Intervals
Set: 5x400m @ 1:40 with 400m easy recovery between each.
Total Workout: 7.5km (including warmup and cooldown)

Brickity-brick

After some quality rest, I finally feel strong again. Today was a brick workout: I did a 45km ride with my friend Will, followed by about 10 minutes of hard running. Will is much faster than I am, so it was definitely a "tempo" workout for me (Thanks for the ride Will!!). Surprisingly, my legs felt pretty good coming off the bike. I like brick training. It really solidifies the fact that race season is just around the corner. First race in 2 weeks: Navy Tridents Sprint Tri (750/20/5).

And in that moment, we were infinite

Childhood.

We were innocent, then. Indestructible. No one and nothing could stop us on our path to our inevitable teleology. Dancing towards our defeat.

Once we were infinite.

Now we are no more than mortal.

Wanted: Rest

Sometimes life gets in the way of your goals. And when it does, you just have to keep on plugging away until things get better. Lately I've been finding that external circumstances have really been wearing on me, and they are starting to have a detrimental effect on my workouts. I've been losing focus. I'm tired. Part of me says I need a few days off to recover, and the other part says just keep pushing through. Who knows what the best solution is?

Right now I need a nap. And some more food.

Two years ago today I learned to use clipless pedals

On May 14, 2004, I took my new(to me) road bike out for a spin for the first time with clipless pedals. I remember falling because I forgot to clip out. 3 times. I've come a long way since then.

Yesterday, armed with a brand new pair of Shimano clipless pedals (courtesy of my fabulous BF), I did my longest ride to date: 95 kilometres (~60 miles). The weather was really grey for the first couple hours, but the sun came out for a little while, which was nice. The loop we did was fairly hilly, and the ride felt great! My legs were a little tired by the end, but I felt strong the whole way through.

I rounded out the week with an LSD run this morning. I ran for about 1hr 40mins; I'm not sure of the exact distance, it was probably 17 or 18km. I certainly wasn't winning any prizes for speed :) Given the two long workouts this weekend, I feel pretty good.

--Week Totals--
Swim: 9150 metres
Bike: 168.43km
Run: 33.78km

I'm tired, but pumped. It's been a really great week for training. Next week will be my highest volume week of the season before I scale back and start to up the intensity.


HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY, MOM. I LOVE YOU!!!!!

Poetic Interlude

Unpacking the Past: Instructions

Take the thickest book.
Wherever you were
you had to write it down.

There may have been sticks.
There may have been stones.
There may have been low places
you could not get out of without
the hope your words brought you,
the way they solidified you
here on earth.

At least one page must be ripped,
and black as ebony
torn-open by your lover
in his rage.

*

Remove an old scar
a few bruises and a broken arm –
the only thing you had to hide.

This is to forget the pain
you cannot leave. Perhaps the sling
you’ve kept though it doesn’t fit
any arm you know,
the photograph that keeps you sane,
a phone call so they’ll take you away
so you can’t walk back
into the dark.

In your book leave room for memories,
leave room for another love.

There may have been empty hallways.
There may have been lost friends.
There may have been signs that warned you
to run fast. Take the dream
you’ve had since
you were just 15, the one
with a boy and a girl
in love.

*

Trust no one who offers you
safety in his arms, a golden chain,
something that was broken once.
Always carry words
that lighten the heart.

Brooklyn Race Report

Brooklyn Road Race
May 7, 2006

Well, I'm awake and refreshed, and the legs were feeling not too bad this morning. Yesterday was awesome. I raced at the Brooklyn RR. My first cycling race!!

It was an absolutely beautiful day: about 17 degrees and sunny with very little wind. I chose to race in the Novice category, which was only 40k (because I felt that I just don't have enough mileage to *race* 80k yet). The course was a hilly 20k loop. The first half of the course was what I could describe as "rolling," while a couple of the hills on the back of the course were pretty tough.

Fortunately, I was sent off with the Open women category, so I was riding with the usual suspects (some of the girls that I train with). Of the 60 riders at the race, there were 6 women. Sad, really. At about 10k, we lost two of them, never to be seen again. After the first lap, there were 4 of us, and one went out with a mechanical :( Then there were three. I managed to stay with the front two girls for my two laps. I was really hurting by the last 10k or so. But I was glad I stuck with them.

I'm pretty happy with my time considering the hills. And I know that any triathlon bike course I will do here will be easier than that one. I felt like I could have run 10k afterwards too. So I am really pleased. I came 1st in the novice women category (against myself! haha!). Funny feeling to get a medal when you're racing against yourself.

So that's my race report! I had a blast. This race was a huge confidence booster, which I definitely needed, because I've had a lot of self-doubt recently. This race was hopefully what I need to get my mind back on track. I had a great time, everyone was friendly, and the sun was shining!

Training Update

May 2:
Run: 4km easy
Bike: T30 (Lactate Threshold) test in the Phys Lab. (Total time: 1 hour 10mins)

May 3:
Run: 10km at 6:30am.
Bike: Hill intervals (6xCowie Hill Road) at lunchtime

May 4:
Swim: 4250 metres at 7:30am
Bike: 60km at noon.

That's 6 workouts in three days. I feel tired, but very happy with my progress.

I wish you enough...

I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright.
I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more.
I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive.
I wish you enough pain so the smallest joys in life appear much bigger
I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.
I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.
I wish you enough hellos to get you through the final good-bye.