Week 2

Yesterday wrapped up my second week of training. The overall feeling this week was, well, overwhelming. I keep thinking about how much equipment it takes to do all of this. Granted, I have a fabulous bike, shoes, helmet, etc. but then my brain goes to the rest of the stuff. I need a bike computer to measure cadence and my heart rate, a wetsuit, new running shoes after mine get burned out, tubes, registration fees for Galveston, flights, hotel, travel expenses. Did i also mention that we have two kids at home as well? We all know the cost in that! Ha! All of this on top of training. Training. Thank goodness that I have such a supportive husband. He's constantly telling me, don't worry about it, we got this. Stop worrying! Now that's something that I'm great at!

I'm literally sitting in the waiting room while Kylie is having a neuropsychology exam. All day. Once again, something she has to do because of NF. Oncologist on Friday. Neuropsychologist on Monday. How fun is that for a six year old? Earlier in the morning, they asked me how long Kylie will be on Gleevac. I couldn't give them a honest answer. I don't know.  How sad is that? I don't know how long my daughter will have to take pills that is doing, Lord knows what, to the inside on her body.  I wonder if most people who take any type of chemo know how long it will last. Does it help if they can say "5 down and 10 to go"? It makes me put all of this Ironman business into perspective and the hard truth reminds me why I'm doing what I'm doing. Why I will be sacrificing so much over the next several months.

On the bright side, we are so blessed. Above all, love... 1 Peter 4:8. We definitely have a remarkable support system and can honestly say that we are loved. We feel it everyday. From each other, family, and friends.

So back to training. This past week was another success. I managed to stick to my program and even got two days off! I was able to rest up before my 15k race on Saturday and I felt like I pushed myself the whole way. Reflecting on the race, I must've done pretty well with pacing because, even with some intense hills, I had a couple negative splits at the end. Honestly, I'd rather not run too many races over the next several months and focus more on the mileage than trying to beat myself. It's the silent competitor in me. I race against myself all of the time. Even though I'm not incredibly fast, I still want to PR.

After I found my hubby after the race, I asked him, jokingly "did I look fast"? Ha! Like a gazelle! Actually, I pictured one of those pictures that have circulated on the Internet...