T minus 8 days...holy crap

So thrilled and EXCITED!

I REALLY appreciate all of the supportive comments everybody's made.

I did my little combo workout last night where I taught spinning for 60 minutes (and okay, I did frame the workout to suit my needs...just this ONCE! The students got a good workout!) and then ran for 40 (with 5 easy at the end...as in super easy). I must've looked like an utter goofball on the treadmill because I couldn't wipe that damn smile off my face. I felt SO awesome. AWESOME. My training plan said to do a run that was roughly half of the bike time and to spend 10-20 minutes in Zones 4-5a...

So I ran at first at an 8:20 to warm up...HR still very low...after a couple minutes I brought it down to 8:00/mile for the rest of my 5:00 warm-up. HR still pretty aerobic. So...I finally brought it up to Zone 4 at a 7:40 pace for 10 minutes...spent 5 minutes back at an 8:00 pace to recover slightly...and did another 10 minutes at 7:35 to bring it up to Zone 5a by the end...and 5 minutes back at an 8:00 mile. I couldn't believe how incredible I felt.

I always get nervous about the taper. It scares me because I completely relate to the bunch of athletes who start to freak out that they're not exercising. I'm not as bad as I used to be because I've learned how valuable rest can be. Still, perfecting the taper is something I've yet to do. Wondering if I'll really peak on race day, wanting to do just the right amount of 'hard' work and no more so that I can keep those muscles fresh and ready to work.

Looking back, I made a goal back in January to be able to run for 2 hours an an 8:00 mile. I never did make my long run longer than 1:45 because I was totally running at that pace; I know I won't need to run longer than that if I can hold that pace in the race. It's kind of cool to look back on the goals I set for myself and realize that I've done a nice job of sticking to them. That writing-them-down thing REALLY WORKS!

I'm looking forward to seeing my friends from the Lombardi Sports Tri Team that I was a part of for three fabulous years (only reason I'm no longer with Lombardi is really based on location, given that I'm now 50 miles away...I sure do miss them!). I'm looking forward to meeting fellow bloggers Paul, Rocketpants (on the run course! I'll be wearing Team Aquaphor stuff! Let me know if you find out what aid station you're going to be at!) and Loren. I'm looking forward to seeing my dear friend Heather, fellow triathlete and super woman who lives in San Diego and we do the Santa Barbara Tri together every year. I'm looking forward to having my supportive significant other at the race to cheer me on.

And finally...I'm looking forward to HAVING FUN!!!!

Oh - did I mention what I'm going to purchase this weekend?

Yes, I'm going for the Aero - or, as I call it - Alien Helmet.

I had an email conversation with Paul regarding Zipp wheels, which led to aero helmets. I was considering renting a pair of Zipp 404s, which I used in the Big Kahuna last year. I borrowed them from a friend for that race, but that friend is racing next weekend, hence the unavailability (boo). So he said "With the helmet it's not just a rental. You get that for all of your races. The Spuik one is nice as is the LG rocket." Good point, especially for somebody like me with a limited amount of disposable income. And really...for me, it hasn't really come down to seconds. It's usually a minute or two, which I CURSE for my slow transition times (damn wetsuit).

So I'm going alien-helmet shopping this weekend. Wahoo! (You know you're an athlete when, as a woman, you get more excited about shopping for gear than shoes) Any recommendations (on helmets, not shoes) ???