i know. i cannot complain living in san diego.... but here is the forecast! looks like some wet workouts in my near future!

i learned yesterday that You Tube is the 2nd largest search engine behind Google on the internet. i apparently am behind- although i tend to watch a lot of You Tube videos- i did not know people use it so much as a primary search engine. in order to get on the ball with this breaking (insert sarcasm here) news i received i am determined to do some video blogging. looks like ill need my water proof camera this weekend however.

to your health,

C

PR Half Mary!!

i am pleased to report i came home from the surf city 1/2 mary with a personal best! yahhh! 1:38!

waking up race morning was a bit of a struggle... the night before the neighbors, up in newport beach (if you know newport those houses are really close together), decided to have themselves a party... until about 3am or so... which was everything less then ideal to wake up at 5:30am to go run 13.2 miles. so me- having been wide awake from 1am-3am, woke up at 5:30 thinking i had already run the race! counting on coffee and adrenaline i got up and out the door!

my entire plan was to 'see where i am at' in terms of pace vs. heart rate. i have not worn a heart rate monitor in a long time so i was interested in seeing where i could sustain running some what 'comfortably'. i started out in the back on the first wave and took the first mile to do the usual dodging of people as my warm up. by mile 2 i decided i really had no time to waste and got into my grove. by the middle of mile 2 i had caught up to the 1:40 pace group. in the past i would have thought i was running too fast if i was with them. but my heart rate was just under 170 and i felt like i was just out for a 'comfortably' hard run. by mile 3 the pace group was behind me!

i ran miles 3-6 with about 3-4 other people. it worked out that i had finally settled in with people running similar paces. mile 6 was a slight downhill and right turn back onto coast highway. since the course was pretty much flat (only slight ups/downs) i took advantage of any downhill! i ended up dropping the group of runners i was with and got into my grove. i felt the best miles 6-10. i really felt great! my heart rate stayed right around 173-175.

mile 11 i am pretty sure my lack of sleep, wine at dinner and overall pre season fitness caught up to me because i was over it! i was so ready to be done running. i just stayed on it though because i was still on track to beat 1:40 (my previous PR and long time 'barrier'). i finished right at 1:38!

i also finished without completely wreaking myself! i really felt like i ran the race at my threshold because i have run harder half marathons where i feel way worse. so- despite all of the factors- i am very happy to come out of it with a best time!! going in i felt like i could run a 7:30 pace but i just did not know how i would feel. the feeling of being in control of the pace was awesome and makes me realize i have a potential to run faster!

the 1:30's feels like i have entered new 'runners' territory! which is so much fun! breaking 1:40 has been a goal for a while so i happy to say that i CAN run faster and i feel more like a RUNNER! whaooohoooo!!

now to decide whats next...

to your health,

C

pre-race

its been since September since my last race! i feel a little out-of-sorts because i have not been in 'race' mode for a few months! i thought i'd list out my pre-half mary preparations this week.

1. the pre-race pedi. either done manually (myself) with limited color options or book an appointment at salon with too many color options. since it is only wednesday- i still have time to make an appointment. color choice... well we will have to revert to the outfit (#2).

2. pre-race outfit organization. this can really be divided into sub categories since we have the morning of the race, the race and post race drive home.

• morning of the race. start time is 7am. temperatures are predicted be in the 50s. these temps will require and not to be limited to: cream colored juicy knit beanie, oversized zip up lululemon sweatshirt and juicy sweats most likely some horrible color of velour. comfort trumps fashion race morning before the sun comes up.

• actual race attire: tricky here. it will be cold at the start but i will warm up quick once that heart rate gets going. lululemon speed shorts: yes too short for a pre seasonrace/current race weight but the most comfortable thing to chose from. Nytro women's race tech tee- gotta support the people who support me! comes in white with a lot of pink and black accents of skull and butterfly decals. most likely will race in my silver Zoot racing flats. fast and flashy! lululemon bright orange head band. and to top off the entire look my $1.50 Target rainbow striped gloves. i hate the fact that i will probably toss them at mile 3 (not because of their outrageous cost) but because they are my favorite ones!

• post race. if you participate in endurance sports you know you only stay warm for so long right after the event. eventually dehydration kicks in with the combination that its only 8:30am so the temps got up to 60 degrees and you are soaked in your own sweat. post race there are 2 key items: towel and hair brush. a towel drys off the sweat and allows you to put back on the velour pants and sweat shirt without too much hesitation of wasting perfectly clean clothes on a sweaty body for the sake of being warm. hair brush is equally necessary so you look half way decent when you make the stop at starbucks on the way home after the race. yeah yeah- you just did a 'half marathon' but the people in line next to you don't care and you should probably look at least half way put together. if you want to show off- keep that finisher medal on... =)

4. laundry. must finish my laundry to be sure everything is clean for race day.

5. race week nutrition. about the same as my usual. i am trying to cut back on wine consumption although it is not happening as i type this post. i will eat same calorie amounts, just less salad and veggies the night before the race. i do not want any stomach issues due to too much roughage! and to hydrate i will be sure to increase water/electrolyte consumption 3 days out. so tomorrow its me and my water bottle.

6. the once-over on race day logistics. logistics being first where and when to do the 'pack it pick up.' the 'pack it' usually contains a lot of advertisements and maybe a bit size luna bar. usually i eat the luna bar as i walk through the expo. other logistics include where to park before the race and where the most convenient starbucks location is post race.

7. race expo. happens day prior to the race. here is where the vendors sell the following: dorky running socks, 'i run for... ' t-shirts. special sports enhanced water. recovery nutrition. stretching apparatuses. you name they got it. i plan to look and see what is new but not purchase.

8. sleep. this is the most important pre-race component in my opinion. the week out from any race it is important to be getting enough rest each night so you wake up feeling refreshed each morning. especially early morning. my afternoon coffees lately are not helping me get to bed early so i am kicking the habit- at least until after the race is over!

to your health,

C

commuting to work

today i commuted to work with these:

not really by choice... husband commutes to work on his bike but leaves his car in la jolla 13.5 miles away. so when he came home last night, the usual: blasting espn pod casting out of his iphone all while dripping sweat onto my wool pottery barn rug, and said his back was bothering him. well this morning, back still bothering him, he took the only car at our house - my car- to la jolla for work this morning. lucky for me my first client was at a reasonable hour of the morning so i had time to process the logistics of running (yes riding a bike would have been the easiest solution) and make it work!

the gym- work, i am lucky!- is 4.25 miles away all along coast highway. really no reason not to run everyday to work except for the fact that there is no shower. yah yah a personal trainer just needs to look 1/2 way decent and only sort-of-sweaty...

the logistics seemed fairly simple: run to gym, train clients, run home.

run to gym= easy. cute outfit. saw dolphins! minimal "running in fog on hwy101 full of traffic" anxiety.

arrive at gym= very sweaty. red face. how does that happen after a pace of 38 min??

train clients= thirsty, cold, then hungry. did not think this through well at all.

run home= faster pace getting home because i was cold and hungry!

total commute time: 1:15 (60 min longer then a normal commute on bike or in car)

feeling of satisfaction after running 8.5 miles: priceless!

now to figure out how to run to the real estate office and still pull off half way 'presentable'...

to your health,

C

1.11.11

crazy date today not only in the written format but that it really is eleven days into the new year!

our new years resolutions in the walseth house is very simple 'buckle down.' justin and i came up with this over our holiday as we reflected back on 2010 in all of its crazy glory! we had 2 trips out of the country, 3 family weddings, 1 ironman (2attempts) and 2 new jobs! just nuts. this time last year i could have told you what every other weekend had planned for the entire year. so for 2011 we are buckling down at home. staying home and getting to work. it feels good to start a new year with a clean and empty slat.

buckling down also comes with me still getting a feel for an increased work load- not the exercise type just yet- but the 'job' type. it has been fun! real estate is a lot like shopping actually... you get to shop for clients: research homes and their values and find the best deal!

on the exercise/training front i have decided that i need to stay with my 'buckling down' resolution. i am very excited and honored to be a part of the Nytro womens triathlon team again for 2011! this year is going to include a lot more local triathlon racing in southern california and running racing for me. i really want to focus more on running. as i eluded to on my last post it really is the most fun.

this past week i buckled down and actually added up total miles i ran and it looked like this:

monday: off

tues: easy 4miles solo

wed: 10 miles social! the best way to do it

thurs: 3 miles with justin's added 20 sets of stairs and 10 sprint bonus

friday:75 min special from gazelle beth with pick ups

sat: rode

sunday: 1:40 K-mayer special of her 'slow' but really not so slow pace through the ranch

based on my so-called-normal- speed it comes to be about 35 miles! whahhooo! much higher then i thought especially without 'ironman' training.

i have about 2 weeks of hard work left to race the Huntington beach half mary! feb 6th... to be continued!

to your health,

C

Married. New Job.

the title subs it up for you. i've been busy. but i'm back!

justin and i got married! 10.17.10 the best day of my life. i never really believed people when they would say that... but to say we had fun is an understatement. we had a blast. to be surrounded by your family and friends, all in one night, is such a surreal feeling. very humbling.

one of many photos...

since returning home from wedding-extravaganza i got a second job. i will continue to do personal training in the morning and evening hours but decided it was time to fill up my days with some residential real estate!

for info/details on my new job click your mouse button here. and for my newest blog to keep anyone who wants to remain updated on our local residential real estate san diego market, national/global market and pretty much anything i find blog worthy pertaining to real estate please visit You're Home.

which means... i will leave this blog dust free with only triathlon, running, weight lifting, weight loss, raw foods, vegan recipes and anything else i find blog worthy to post relating only those topics.

i will start with running. that is all i have been doing. i know in san diego we cannot complain about the weather... but it is just not motivating to get out on a bike early mornings! i nearly froze yesterday morning running in shorts at 7am! literally froze. i ran up one of my favorite canyons in del mar. chest was tight, legs were tight and when i looked down the color of my skin matched my new purple target gloves. not good. especially when i looked back up to see my running partner quarter mile ahead within the matter of minutes!

in all seriousness, despite frigid temps, i am a bit burned out on triathlon at the moment. since finishing ironman wisconsin in september, heading right into my wedding in october (no workout break here), since we've been home all i've wanted to do is run. i really think it is because i never gave myself a break post ironman. and if you've followed my blog at all you may remember i had been training since last january for the IMCDA in june... it was a really long season.

so running these past 4 weeks have been every other day for anywhere between 45 min- 2hrs. yup 2 hrs. i cannot explain it. i just enjoy it! i also signed my butt up for the half marathon in huntington beach... Feb 6th! looking for a PR of course.

glad to be back to blog world.

to your health,

C

madison wisconsin

i know- there are cob webs on this blog site! thats just how its going to roll i have a feeling through the next couple months.

i have never been to the midwest before this week. here are my top favorite things so far:

1. green. everywhere.

2. corn. everywhere.

3. escalators for your shopping cart.

4. everyone is really nice.

5. people wave a lot.

6. the lakes.

7. thought it was flat- but found hills on the bike course. a lot of them.

8. the college town feel, like Isla Vista but with an older feel

9. couches on the decks of the college houses... oh i wish i was still in college sometimes

10. the farmers market- its huge!

11. the veggie garden on the capitols front lawn. ("so thats what that basil should look like..." )

12. the matching cow print bike kits i got as a souvenir.

ironman on tap for tomorrow! more to come...

to your health,

C