birthday thank you/answers to FAQ/work out times for the weekend

Hello Triathletes:
         I have added the newest member of the crew to the roster, Joann. She will not be training with us all the time since she is up in Wake Forest but we will keep her in the loop and hopefully get together with her when we do our full practice triathlons and for our social gatherings on occasion. Since I mentioned the social side of our training I wanted to say THANK YOU so much for my birthday cake and for my presents. That was a wonderful surprise and something you absolutely did not have to do but I loved it. Maggie would be proud that I did not start crying like I always do. (the coach can't cry....she has to be tough). Training with all of you is a pretty good gift in and of itself. I love that you panic and start running when you hear someone coming up behind you in the morning and it is not because you think it is a mugger....you think it is me. That is excellent. I also enjoy the dedication, the questions and how hard everyone is trying and training. I was at the pool with Franky, Sarah, Angela and Kathy and it was a super workout/lesson. I did not have to beat on Franky...she did her laps with lots of mojo and very little supervision. Kathy and Angela are fish but Maggie was keeping a close eye on them. Sarah did awesome and as always she has the best attitude throughout every workout....amazing for the girl who said she "hates" exercise. I think my favorite part of the evening was driving home and along with two excellent teachers trying to help Maggie do her 6th grade math. I am glad we were not on video. We were much better at helping Trey with his math!!
        A couple of points I want to touch on and remind people about:
1. No holding your breathe in swimming....blow bubbles when your head is in the water. We are swimming this Saturday at the TAC at 0700. If you wanted to some of you could run the mall parking lot after swimming...it is a 1.3 mile loop. I won't be able to join you for the running since Trey has basketball at 0830.
2. I was thinking of going with a plain black suit and possibly putting our team name on it or simply getting a wacky suit and we all have the same one. You have to let me know your thoughts. I was thinking plain black because then we could get different styles.....bikini, tankini, one piece etc. On the subject of suits...speedos, TYRs, etc all types of training suits fit tighter. They run in sizes from 24 to 40 and in some styles 42, 44. I just got a catalog in the mail that has suits on sale for $22.00 or 3 for $63.00 with free shipping on orders over $70.00. I will bring it on Saturday and we could do an order all together for folks looking for a practice suit. For the sizing record I wear a 38 in a speedo and most of you are smaller than me. It is snug but it does stretch  in the water.....just the way they are built.
3. The question keeps coming up about what to wear for the tri....we are all fashionistas at heart. I wear tri-shorts and a workout top that is a tankini style but tight. I bike in that and run in it. I will throw on a shirt if it is chilly. You will see people in every outfit imaginable on the day of the tri. Some people have more money than talent so they will look good and go slow and some are super fast but did not think about what they were wearing except from a function stand point. The issue for most people is concern about support for their poor boobies while running....I am usually more concerned about my big belly sticking out but there are solutions for all issues. The one I have seen most is wearing a sports bra under your bathing suit and then you throw on a shirt and shorts before you start to ride. Or as my sister says you could wear a regular swim suit and then throw on a tri shirt or sports top that has support in it. We will try out many options before race day.
4. Keep up the good work on getting with smaller groups to make sure that you are exercising when it is not a big group event. Kathy and Angela are meeting at Clubworx to swim on Friday night at 5pm. I know that a group is going to CU today at noon to swim. That is all good.
5. On the idea of biking as we have said before if you have access to spin classes  you should be going 1-2 times a week. When you get out of spin class you need to get on the track or the treadmill and walk/run at least one mile. You have to get used to the feeling of making the transition. Biking outside is a different animal than spinning but after you do your ride in the neighborhood get off of your bike and run/walk at least 15 minutes. I biked 20 miles yesterday (I swear it felt like 30....so I feel your pain) and then I ran 2 miles....ugh...it did not feel fabulous.
6. 0700 on Saturday at TAC for swimming and 0700 on Sunday at Tiff's house for biking. Her address is: Kennsington Rd in Woodlake....I deleted the full address. Tiff can you resend?
 
OK I need to get moving....thanks again for the wonderful birthday wishes. I will end with a quote from a birthday card I got..it said, "they say a brisk walk is a great way to stay young and healthy and on the inside it said, "the problem is the wine keeps splashing out of the glass!" I am not sure why that made me think of all  you ladies. Keep up the great work and thank you again...can't say it enough.