Monday, August 25, 2008

August Photo Gallery

sunrise over Shadow Cliffs Reservoir prior to the Tri For Fun swim start


finishing aforementioned sprint


post race BBQ with Andy, Garuna, Becca, Becca's friend, and Adam


Annie, our new collie/shepherd mix



Dan posing on a bridge above Lavazolla Creek on a recent mountain biking adventure



enjoying a break from the mountain biking action



one of the trails went through an apparently active mine

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Recovery Continues...

3.5 weeks post-IM and it's finally sinking in just how hard the past 6 months have been. The fatigue of so many months of training is obviously deeply ingrained. I know my body is enjoying the time off, but it has a weird way of thanking me. 3 weeks out from a cold, and I'm still coughing up some decent loogies, and I seem to get sore from the most benign things too. I'm not rushing back into anything though, since my body usually let's me know when it's ready to rock.

This past weekend we went on a leisurely hike up to the backside of Mt. Tam. It was a decent 4-5 mile hike, but felt pretty good. Afterwards I'm feeling pretty sore. Calves and hammy are a bit stiff. Other than that I suppose I'm feeling back to normal.

Lake Bon Tempe, with Mt. Tam in the background

Friday, August 01, 2008

Ironman Fallout - Symptoms, Thoughts, Recovery

- The first 3 days after the race weren't nearly as bad as I thought they would be. Walking was definitely difficult, especially going down stairs. My ankle swelled to softball proportions on the plane ride home, but was fine after a round of ice and rest. I did the RTB Relay as part of a 6-man team once, and was definetely more sore afterwards.

- I have slept far less than I thought I would. I normally can sleep 10 hours per night, no problem. Post race I couldn't make it past the 7 hour mark. Only the past few nights have I been able to make it to 9-10 hours of sleep.

- I basically have no appetite, counterintuitive, yes, but I've had to force feed myself over the past 2 weeks. What's the deal?? The past few days have been a bit better, and it's been helped by some good home cooking. Tonight we made some rice noodles, broccoli, carrots, fried tofu, and a sweet peanut sauce:

- 4 days post race I was bombarded with a serious sinus congestion type cold. Runny nose, mild cough, crazy sinus pressure/headache. It has waxed and waned, but a week later is still lingering around. My immune system hasn't been bombarded like this since Feb '07.

- PTSD. Pretty much every night since the race I've had a dream (more like a nightmare) about it. Last night for example I dreamed Mike had to do 3 - 56 mile laps because he forgot his running clothes in his bike special needs bag. For some reason I was riding with him. What?!? My mind doesn't seem to want to relax.

- 2 weeks out, my muscles are feeling pretty normal. I haven't done any sort of exercise, and am willing to guess that if I did, my legs would put up a bit of a fight. I plan to wait until this cold fully clears to do any sort of exercise.