Ride

I took my bike for a short ride after work yesterday. It was very different riding a tri bike versus a road bike, so I spent most of the ride getting used to the new bike and new gears. I also decided to go up the very steep Sierra Road to make sure I could still climb hills. I did relatively well, but didn't go very far because it was getting dark.

Today, I took the bike for a 2 hour ride to Portola Valley and back. It was a good ride and I made it 34 miles in those 2 hours. After was a quick 30 minute jog.

Tomorrow is a coached recovery workout. A 45-minute open water swim and 10-mile run. I feel more recovered just thinking about tomorrow's workout...

Countdown to Vacation

One week from today, I'll be on vacation for 1o days. I'm looking forward to spending time with my niece and family. And I can't wait for some extended downtime because I've been very tired.

My family is going on a cruise to celebrate my grandpa's 90th birthday. We (grandpa, mom, dad, brother, sister-in-law, niece, aunt, cousin and I) will be headed from LA down the coast of Mexico. I'm hoping for nice weather and lots of rest (in between keeping up with Ironteam workouts of course...).

The countdown is on. 7 days until vacation!

Spending Bill

I did my budget today and have put an end to my spending spree (aka. Amy's 2009 Spending Bill). Just like the government.

Now I just need the State of California to give me my tax refund. Then I can get back to spending...

Tired

I slept a long time last night. Almost 10 hours. I went to sleep early and woke up late. That's ok because I didn't have anything on my work calendar for this morning. I got out of bed 1 hour later than I had planned. And I was still tired. I felt like I could have slept for another 4 or 5 hours if I had the option.

This is a recovery week for Ironteam. Hallelujah!

Tooth Brusher?

After another long swim, then spin/run/strength training day, I'm not 100% sure I'll be able to lift my arms for long enough to brush my teeth tonight.

Does anyone know a good tooth brusher?

Iron Saturday...

Today started with an Ironteam workout. A scheduled 1.2-mile open water swim and 7-mile run. Not too big of a deal except I gave blood the other day and have had a scratchy throat since then.

We jumped in Redwood Shores lagoon and hit the really cold water. Thank goodness for wetsuits! We started our swim and I kept swimming for what seemed like a LONG time. Turns out we swam 1.5-miles. I had a hard time climbing out of the water (the deck was too high) so a coach and teammate dragged me out of the water. I'm sure I looked like a beached whale.

After a quick change, we went for a 7-mile run... Which was more like 9.5-miles. I was having a hard time keeping my heart rate down towards the end, so I took a few walk breaks.

I made it, but was exhausted when I got home. I cleaned my stuff and packed my things for tomorrow's workout.

Tomorrow starts with an endurance swim set. Then 30 mins spin, 15 mins run, and strength exercises X 3. Somewhere around 4.5 hours of working out.

I'm tired just thinking about it!

Perty bike!

This is my new bike. It is a triathlon specific bike and I have no idea if I'll be able to ride it or change gears without falling off of it. But it sure looks fast! I can't wait to take it out for a ride!

SPAM

I got this notice yesterday from J&J Spam control:

Dear Amy Chang [LFS]: You have 951 NEW spam messages since February 17, 2009 12:45 AM

Seriously? 951 SPAM messages in two days? And another 15 or so that still make it to my inbox every day! That is just crazy. Do people really not have anything better to do than send SPAM?

I blame the fact that I used to use my work e-mail address for everything and when I finally switched, I was already linked to some SPAMers. And I'm convinced my Out of Office Auto Reply caused even more SPAM to arrive because they had notification that my e-mail address was "live".

Our e-mail addresses have changed, but we still get e-mail from our old addresses forwarded to us. This will continue for another year or so. Hopefully after they shut off our old addresses, the quantity of SPAM will reduce.

Until then, I wish they would hire the people that handle SPAM at Gmail because that spam blocker is the BEST!!!

Google Search

OK, my cousin brought this to my attention... Here is what you need to do. Go to the www.google.com (main search page) and type in "I am extremely". Don't hit enter, just wait to see what it brings up. And read the bottom entry.

WTF? Seriously?

Rain, rain go away...

I know we need the rain. I know it's only been a few days of heavy rain. But, this is California and we are spoiled. Because of that, I'm going to complain about the rain!

I wish it would only rain at night while we are sleeping. And I wouldn't mind rain in the middle of the work day. But rain all holiday weekend was frustrating. I bailed on my run tonight because it was raining.

I'd really be happy if I could see the sun. Hopefully tomorrow.

Rain, rain go away, come back another day!

Run, Take Two

This morning, I woke up at 4:45 so I could get a run in before the Team in Training 5K. I arrived at Stanford and got ready to run.

With a headlamp and reflective vest, I headed out in the rain for a 10-mile run. The only issue was I didn't FEEL like running in the rain. I made it around the corner (about 400 yards) and decided running in the rain while it was dark was a bad idea. There was no reason to torture myself. So, I went back to my car.

I ended up taking a nap in the car before the TNT run, then went for a run after. This run was much better. It wasn't raining and I felt better. It was a good run.

Oh, by the way, someone got one of our mentors to serenade me in front of the entire team this morning... I enjoyed the song and he has a great voice, so it was fun. But this friend of mine will have to pay for the embarrassment factor. And payback is a b*tch!

I think someone took pictures, so I'll post one when I track one down.

Hello Left Arm, How are you?

I was told this week that I have a "lazy left side" while swimming. In other words, I'd drag it through the water the easiest way possible and mimic the motion of a swimming stoke, but not actually push much water. To fix this, my friend told me to pay attention to the placement of my hand when starting my stroke. She said "pretend you are putting mail in a slot".

Last night at swim practice, I tried this. I focused on my left arm only and recited "Put mail in a slot" over and over again in my head. And guess what!?!?! I'm faster now. I was keeping up with and swimming faster than the people in my lane! That hasn't happened all season. And, when I looked one lane over (to the slightly faster lane), I was able to keep up with them too!

Today, my left arm and side are sore. Probably from having to work in the pool for the first time... I still have a ways to go, but I'm feeling better about my swimming for the first time in a REALLY long time!

Bonus

Every year as part of our pay, we get a bonus. And every year, the bonus is multiplied by a "bonus multiplier". That number depends on company performance, etc.

A few years ago, we had an 88% bonus multiplier because we missed our business targets by 1%. We all thought that was a bit harsh, but there wasn't much we could do about it. Two years ago, we had a GREAT year and met all of our goals. Our bonus multiplier was 104% that year.

Last year, we had a bad year. We missed many of our targets and barely delivered our bottom line to the mothership. In fact, we had layoffs in order to make our bottom line obligations. What is our bonus multiplier this year? 102%.

While I am happy that I still have a job AND am getting a bonus, I think it sends the wrong message to lay off almost 100 people at the company and then give everyone a 102% bonus.

Couldn't we have a 95% bonus and kept some of those people?

Still on the ground

I have not been on an airplane so far this year. In fact, I haven't been on an airplane in a REALLY long time. I wonder if the United flight crew to Hong Kong misses me.

At first, I missed the travel. I missed living out of my suitcase and going in and out of immigration. I felt important sitting in Business class and sometimes first class. I earned SUPER status on airlines frequent flyer programs and hotel frequent stay programs, so I was upgraded often for no reason in particular. But after I was home and able to get in a routine with life, I stopped missing the travel.

Yesterday, I had to make a decision about my next business trip. See, I am supposed to be in Asia next week and the week following, but I didn't really feel like going. So, I cancelled.

What was the deciding factor? The thought of having to do my training on the treadmill!

New Wheel

I have ordered a new wheel off of Ebay. Just the front one for now. No use spending a ton of money on a bike I may not keep for long. Although I've done 2 Ironmans on this bike and I'm kind of attached to it. I'll let the wheel arrive and then go from there.

One day at a time and one decision at a time.

Money

After our ride today, I went to the bike shop to find out how much new wheels will cost. Apparently, they are going to be at least $900 to get ones that are of the same quality as mine.

Now, the wheels are turning in my head (pardon the pun) and I'm thinking if I get cheap wheels and sell the bike, I can afford a new bike. It is 7 years old now and I've been told a few times the frame is too big for me.

Decisions, decisions!

Broke

This is a picture of the broken front wheel of my bike. The hub cracked and a spoke is loose. And it means I need a replacement wheel.

When I was loading my bike into my car for tomorrow's ride, the front wheel wouldn't roll. I tested the spokes and found this. Sigh.

I have been saved by friends who have offered to let me borrow their wheel, so I'll be able to do the ride tomorrow.

Then it's time to spend more money on a new wheel. Part of me wants a new bike now, but I know that's not logical. Like getting a new car because of a flat tire. But I worry that other things will start breaking.

Yoga, Run, Lunges

I'm sore today. It could be because I did yoga at lunch yesterday. Or because I ran 4 miles after work. But most likely, it is because I did a BUNCH of lunges yesterday during our first track workout for the Spring run team season.

As a coach, it's my favorite exercise to have participants do, so I had them do 10 per leg. I did lots and lots of lunges, first to demonstrate, then to join in on the fun. I think I did at least 60 lunges, maybe more (I wasn't counting).

Today, I shall swim to try to get some of the soreness out. And tonight, I have a massage scheduled. I can't wait. I have been looking forward to this massage for a while now!

Lottery

Today, I submitted my name for a lottery slot to the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii. Wish me luck! I'll find out in April sometime, so I'll let you all know the outcome. I'm not sure if I want to get in or not... But it would be really cool to race in Kona!

TAXES

I filed my taxes yesterday. I used TurboTax and e-filed my Federal and State taxes. I'm looking forward to getting an I.O.U. from the state since we still don't have a budget for the year and our credit rating is now in the toilet.

I vote to suspend the paychecks of California legislators and the Governor until a budget is passed. Let's freeze their bank accounts too so they have a small idea of how much pain they are causing the people of this state by not passing a budget.

This great State of California better get it's act together!

GPS

I spent most of the day searching for ways to "avoid" the cost of a new Navigation DVD for my car (it's 6 years old and many roads are no longer correct). I searched high and low and found many ways to get the data, but only one way to get it for free. This path was, of course, not legal, so I ended up bailing on it tonight and ordering a real Toyota Navigation DVD.

It was $280 from a Toyota dealer and I could have gotten it cheaper, but didn't trust that I'd get a genuine Toyota DVD. So, when it arrives next week, I will go from Version 2.1 to version 8.1! I suppose that's worth $280.

During my search, I learned of how to override the "safety" on the Toyota Navigation systems (Toyota Nav systems lock you out of functions while the car is going more than 5MPH). For 2003-2006 Nav systems, you can find a service menu by pressing imaginary buttons on a certain screen. I finally found mine tonight and was very happy.

And yes, I know I had way too much time to surf the internet today. I'm still amazed at what you can find!

25 Random Things

Ok, I know this is on Facebook, but thought I'd post it here too incase you aren't linked to Facebook...

These are 25 random things about me:

1. I have OCD. Not a surprise to anyone who knows me. I do my best to keep it under control now.

2. I used to know the first 50 digits of pi. Now I think I'm down to 25 or so. I memorized this in 7th grade because our teacher was offering us a Hostess pie if we did. I was a fat kid and really wanted the pie.

3. I wore a back brace for scoliosis from 8th grade to jr. year in HS. It was a full, neck to waist brace that I was supposed to wear 23 hours a day. I hated every minute I had to wear the back brace and I still think it damaged me emotionally in those very formative years.

4. I got my drivers license on the morning of my 16th birthday. I scored 100% on the driving test.

5. For those of you who think I drive fast now, the fact is that I've slowed down, a lot. I once took a rented car up to 135 mph on the freeway to Vegas. Thinking back, that is one of the dumbest things I've ever done.

6. I have my motorcycle license and used to own a motorcycle. I sold it because I didn't like being so close to the ground when driving so fast. And yes, I drive fast, see #5.

7. I grew up in Surf City, USA (Huntington Beach, CA), but didn't like the ocean. I loved the beach, but the cold water and waves crashing you to the ocean bottom weren't fun to me.

8. I have a list of 30 things I want to do in my life and have completed 25 of them. Maybe it's time for a new list.

9. Finishing an Ironman was #19 on my list. It is something I never thought I'd do in my lifetime and now I'm working on Ironman #3.

10. I like repetition. If I like a meal, I can eat it over and over again without getting sick of it. I can run the same marathon over and over again (CIM) and not get bored with it. I can watch the same movie, TV episode, and listen to the same music and not get bored. This is how I survive long plane rides.

11. I'm going on a family cruise this March to celebrate my Grandpa's 90th birthday. He is my last surviving grandparent and the one I am closest to.

12. I have a fortune from a fortune cookie taped to my monitor at work. It says "Start believing in your dreams and others will catch the fever".

13. I just finished my 10th year of Team in Training. I will forever be grateful to TNT for many things, but mostly for bringing the best people into my life.

14. I have the greatest friends. Each of them has at least one quality that I'd like to have so I try to learn from them. They accept that I'm crazy/OCD and sometimes even join in. I don't get to talk to many of them enough but hope they know I think of them often.

15. I keep a blog, but only sent the link to ~20 people and made it unsearchable. Sometimes I wonder why anyone would want to read anything I write and other times I wonder why only 10 people have visited my blog on that day.

16. When I was in 6th grade, my friend's mom would travel all over the world for business. I thought it was so cool and always wanted to live the jet-set lifestyle until I lived it. It is cool to see new places, but it sucks to be away from home so much. I spent more time in a plane last year than I ever have in my life and it was not fun.

17. My niece is the cutest little girl in the world... maybe I'm biased?

18. I was born in the year of the TIGER and was born a LEO. I'm hoping that explains a lot.

19. I don't like movies with unhappy endings. Of course, some movie endings are open to interpretation and I assume they end happily.

20. QUIT is a nasty 4-letter word to me. I hate having to quit even when I know it's the right thing to do (throwing up during a marathon, etc). My head knows it's the right thing to do, but it doesn't stop me from feeling like a failure.

21. It's a good thing I am as smart as I am brave... Meaning I sometimes start projects that are considered difficult even though I have never done anything like that before. For example, cutting into my walls with a Swiss Army knife saw to mount speakers when I had never before cut into drywall. It turned out fine thanks to copious amounts of measuring and re-measuring.

22. I don't handle caffiene well. One cup of coffee in the morning and I am WIRED and if I have it after 2PM, I have a hard time sleeping.

23. My parents never hugged us when we were little (that I can remember) because that's how they were brought up. About 6 years ago I decided I was going to hug my parents and grandpa from then on. It was strange at first, but now it's fine.

24. I have had my car for over 6 years now. This is the longest I have ever had a car. The shortest was 11 months.

25. I had Panda Express for lunch today. I like Panda Express and sometimes crave it when I am in China eating "real" Chinese food. And my friend used to date a guy who lived across the street from the Panda Express Family's compound.

Mis-Calculation

I made a minor miscalculation today when figuring out the route for my 3 hour bike ride. It was supposed to be 40-miles, but turned into 50-miles. Oops.

I spent almost 4 hours on my bike and was very tired by the time I made it home. I was a bit short of food, but luckily had plenty of water.

The good news is my leg didn't hurt! And even though it took a long time, I made it to the top of Old La Honda without stopping. Now I just need to get faster.