It Was The Best of Times, It Was The Worst of Times -- A 2018 Training Journal* Updated 9/27

Keels

The Official Keels of RunDisney
Joined
Feb 27, 2008
* -- I probably won't finish or likely keep up with after a few of weeks

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Hi!

It's me, Keels! Your 28th-favorite RunDisney poster!

I'm back with yet another training journal, but this time I *think* I've figured out the key to these training journals - it's to not start them in January!
(EDITOR'S NOTE: Also, keeping up with them is important)

So ... here goes!
 
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The Schedule
January:
WDW Dopey Challenge
February: Cowtown Bai Bai Crestline Mile | Cowtown 10K
March: RnR NOLA Half Marathon | St. Paddy's Day Triathlon | Wine Down Relay
April: Castaway Cay 5K
May: MS150 Day 2 | Tri Fort Worth
June: Crescent Connection Bridge Run
July: TriWaco | Hell's Half Acre 25K | Mayor's Triathlon
August:
September:
October:
November:
December:
RnR San Antonio Half (Tricentennial Challenge)
 
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Q&A: THIS AGAIN?!?

Obviously, there's a reason for me to start YET ANOTHER Training Journal. I'll answer a few quick questions and then we'll dive in to the real good stuff. Sound good?

Here we go!

KEELS! Why are you doing ANOTHER Training Journal??

Oh, hey! You read my first (and second) Training Journal!

I first became super-active on the DisBoards in 2015 when I decided I wanted to run my first half marathon, and then ultimately run at least one race a month that resulted in a medal. Of course, that changed pretty quickly when @FFigawi talked me into participating in the Dopey Challenge in 2016. And after watching him finish Ironman Florida in 2016, it inspired me to branch out and start my triathlon journey - which was fun and mostly successful, though circumstances kept me from my ultimate goal of a 70.3 in 2017.

So, yes. I'm doing another training journal - this one is more for me to journal different items like I did back with 12 Months of Medals. On top of that, we have a great community here so I'm hoping that some of our more expert individuals will come and chime in.

Also, I like to write and to vent and to b!tch about things, but to also celebrate triumphs and successes - a training journal is a great way for me to that without annoying and alienating my sweet husband and friends who already have to deal with it in real life EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.

So. Yay! Training Journal Part Tres!

So ... What's THIS Training Journal About?

GOOD QUESTION!!! 2018 is going to be an interesting year for me, because now that I've finished Dopey ... I don't have any RunDisney races planned for the foreseeable future. And as my "race" calendar has started to settle in for the year, I don't have many road races on it in general. Not planning for Disney races has allowed me to open up my schedule for events in other disciplines. So, I've set a few goals for myself this year. They are:

  • Redo of the March Sprint Triathlon (my first tri)
  • 70+ Mile One-Day Cycling Event
  • Time Improvement in an Olympic-distance Triathlon
  • Swim Leg of a 70.3 Relay
  • Local Overnight 25K
  • Age Group Finish in July Sprint Triathlon
  • Sub-2:30 at the half distance consistently
  • Stay Healthy

If most of those goals go according to training and plan (and they should) - with the exception of the 25K, they should all be done by May or June - then I'll start seriously working towards a 70.3 in the fall. Some are lofty, but I've got to pull on my competitive nature to try and get me there.

Of all of those goals, the last one is going to be the hardest. I've had a rough go of it injury-wise the past 18 months - some of my own doing (stress fractures, hip sprain), and some out of my control (Achilles bursitis).

Whoa ... What Kind of Gear Do You Have For All This?

So, yeah ... just like running is supposed to be a "cheap" sport, triathlons are the complete opposite - and then some. And because I have to buy ALLTHETHINGSOMG, I've accumulated quite a training collection.

Here's a quick rundown of the things I use on a weekly/frequent basis:

Watch: Garmin Vivoactive 3
Shoes: Brooks Ravenna 7 & 9s, Inov8 F-Lite 235s, Pearl Izumi RD IV
Socks: Features Ultra Light, Balega Hidden Comfort
Bike(s): Specialized Ruby Elite, Specialized Dolce, Giant Liv Alight (Hybrid/Mountain) AKA n+1
Trainer: CycleOps Fluid 2 (though I'm hoping for a Kinetic SmartTrainer for my birthday ... but I have enough stuff that I don't need it just yet and can use the Computrainer at the gym when I need it)
Bike Technology: Garmin Speed + Cadence sensors, Garmin Edge 520
Swim Gear: Vanquisher goggles, random swim cap, TYR fins, TYR paddles, TYR kickboard and TYR pull buoy (DIE I HATE YOU)
Training Programs: Trainer Road, Training Peaks

With the exception of maybe a new trainer (that I TOTALLY don't need, but we've all gotta obsess over something, right?), I've had most of these items for almost a year. Don't ask me about any specifics on the bikes like pedals or saddle or whatever - I can't help you with that. I've got a really fantastic bike shop here in town that helps me out, so trust the experts you know?

Why Do You Always Skip "Order of the Phoenix" When You Watch Harry Potter Movies?

REALLY??!?! What kind of question is this? It's because that movie is dumb and Sirius is the best. Leave me alone. :sad2: :sad1: :sad:

This interview is done.
 
With the exception of maybe a new trainer (that I TOTALLY don't need, but we've all gotta obsess over something, right?), I've had most of these items for almost a year. Don't ask me about any specifics on the bikes like pedals or saddle or whatever - I can't help you with that. I've got a really fantastic bike shop here in town that helps me out, so trust the experts you know?

Buy a power meter instead of a smart trainer. It'll take your training up a notch indoors and out.

https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2017/11/power-meters-annual-buyers-guide-2017-edition.html
 
Woohoo, new training journal! I have faith in all your goals. Especially the one about actually keeping up with this journal. :D
 


Yay new training journal! Yours (the first one, I think) was the first training journal I ever read, so reading this now feels like coming full circle with your journey. Although I'm not one of those expert helpers who can chime in since my running knowledge is average at best and my bike/swim knowledge is non-existent. But if you're looking for input from someone who has no idea what they're talking about, I'm your girl!

Good luck with all your goals this year - I'm excited to see you ace them!

(Also ... totally agree about Order of the Phoenix. That's the movie I skip during the Harry Potter marathons)
 
Happy to see you started up a new journal. I'll be following along and looking forward to seeing you smash your goals!
 
Brokenhearted: A Life Update

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So, here we go.

I mentioned it on The Running Thread back when it happened, but now a couple of weeks have passed and it's finally time to put it all out there so I can truly move on.

On Saturday, Feb. 10, in Cusco, Peru, my father passed away. He was 64.
My Dad was the best of everything on offer - an amazingly loving and devoted husband, a proud (and beloved) father, and an instant friend to all those he encountered.
He is survived by my Mom - his wife of 40 years, myself and Mr. Keels, my two younger brothers, and his most favorite child - his dog, Buddy.
A memorial celebrating his life will be held at a later date, in Fort Worth, Texas.

++++++++

Losing a parent is hard.

Losing a parent in a foreign country, where you don't speak the language? And are left to handle everything? Well, it's just brutal.

My father was cremated at a funeral home in Lima on Tuesday, February 20. I'm still sitting here waiting for the Embassy to get a Health Document that will finally allow his remains to be released, so I can pay for them to fly cargo (which is as much as a first-class ticket, but with far less fun and comfort) back to me here in Orlando. When all this BS is finished, what I will have paid for him to be cremated and transported in a small cardboard box would finance at least three one-week deluxe vacations to Disney for a family of 4. I'm just hoping that I can keep all of it under $10k, because travel insurance doesn't cover any of this.

Meanwhile, our daily discussions start with when we think his ashes might get here, and I go through the latest translated communications I have (which are meager, at best) and then the day happens. I go run or ride my bike, or "run errands". My Mom cries, and then goes out to "piddle around". Or I come back from an unnecessary run and she's just crying in the living room.

The waiting is killing me. I keep trying to go on with my life, but at certain parts of the day ... there is just this big, huge hole and just an emptiness that I'm not sure will ever be filled or made whole. I don't really WANT to do anything, but I just don't want to be in this house. And my desire to deal with any petty BS is pretty much non-existent. I have no F's to give, about anything. I bother my friends via text, because I JUST need to talk about something else. But really, I want to go home, to my house, to my backyard, to my bed. For the first time in my life, I'm by Disney and I don't even want to go. I force myself, hoping that it will help - and I feel ... nothing.

Between having the flu the week before my Dad died and now, I'm down 18 pounds and down almost 2 minutes on my average time. I don't really eat much. I don't sleep more than 2-3 hours in a stretch, though that's been a little better after I had the same alarm and camera system installed here at the Orlando house (like my Dad would've been able to fend off an intruder, but whatever ...). I have a really big approval hearing coming up about a platform I built and am trying to get non-profit approval on, but I've fallen so behind because of this that I'm sure I'm going to lose.

On top of that, every day I'm left to make decisions - or I'm asked what to do, and it's just so hard. I feel bad for my Mom, who is a widow at 62. But, because I'm selfish, I never thought I'd be having to deal with this crap at 36 either. So now, I'm just mad about that too.

I'm pretty sure I'm stuck in the Anger portion of the Grief "Cycle", though I don't really believe that's how feelings progress - at least for me. There was never any Denial or Bargaining - I'm a pragmatist, so I wasn't completely surprised by the news. Acceptance came pretty easily. Depression? Well, that's a given. But I'm mostly still just Angry.

++++++++

I know it doesn't come across, but I've always been painfully shy. I have terrible anxiety and worry extensively about what people think of me. All I've ever wanted in my life was to be a nice person, a good friend, and just someone that people could generally count on. I want to be the rock for the people in my life, just in sheer hope that someone will do the same for me in return.

Maybe some of that anxiety and a need to do things for myself has pushed me to do so much in the running realm - or maybe I just needed to prove to myself that I could channel all the worry and fear I have in my head into something motivating, something that pushes me and challenges me and drives me. Whatever it is, I learned through all of the training and the races that the only person that would never count me out was me - and I know that's a lesson I needed to learn. I needed to find that faith and trust and ultimate belief in myself to break me out of my shell.

@OldSlowGoofyGuy put it best when he told me to think of it like the Marathon ... there are some miles that you feel great, and some miles where you just need to find one singular reason to get your feet to keep moving forward to get down the block, around the corner and on to the next mile marker. Grief and sadness truly feels like a marathon - the highs, the lows, the distance ... they're all there. I hope that the finish to my grief is soon. Some days, I feel like I'm at Mile 24, but then the next day I'm back in Cone Alley.

++++++++

I won't tag everyone - since you know who you are - but real thanks to everyone that has reached out. It sounds silly, but so many people from here have become such close friends, and even the people I don't know as closely still feel like family.

As a personal request - tell everyone in your life how much you love and appreciate them today. Live your life to the fullest and never stop - life is just too short.

I love each and every one of you, and I'm proud to share this space with you. Keep chasing your dreams, your goals and never give up.

If you can dream it, you can do it.
 
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Oh @Keels. My heart just breaks for you. Your dad sounds like such a special man. But I also want to tell you that you’re pretty special yourself. You’re bearing an enormous weight right now, between the logistics, propping up your mom and loved ones where you can, and your own grief. I can’t begin to imagine how difficult, frustrating, and lonely that must feel at times. I don’t have any advice to offer, but I’m sure I’m one of many here who offer ears to bend and support as best we can. Just like I would if you were running a marathon, I’m rooting for you.
 
Thank you for sharing that with us. I hope in some small measure being able to pour that out helps. Anytime you want to do that I hope you feel this is a safe space for it and that if there is anything we can do to help, so many of us would happily do so.

Your dad sounds incredible and I’m so sorry that you and your family lost him at far too young an age. So much love to you as you work your way through this grief. :hug:
 
It's okay to feel mad and it's okay to feel nothing...let yourself feel whatever it is you need to feel.

I'm so sorry this happened. Being an adult really sucks sometimes. :hug:
 

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