Trial and error

Note: if you skim all this, do me a favor and don't miss the question at the bottom. :)

My training had a couple of self-inflicted hiccups Saturday.  First, I got to go riding with my awesome sister-in-law on Saturday. She just got a road bike for her birthday in April and is planning to do the Tour de Donut this year, so she wanted to get in some miles.  We planned to meet at my house at 7 am, and since she was running a little behind I had time to check my tires and make sure they were properly aired up.  I felt all proud and responsible.

The road bike has presta valves (I included the link because I have to look it up every time to remember which is which), which are new for me.  I knew there was a little piece that had to be loosened to put in the air, and I took it off.  Ummm...bad move.  I got the tire aired out, and then as soon as I took the pump off the tube deflated.  So, instead of me being ready to go when Kristy got there, she had to wait while I changed my tire.  Grrr.  On the other hand, I managed successfully, so I guess it was good practice.

Kristy on the trail

We rode on the local bike trails.  They're beautiful, lack car traffic and stoplights, and have a variety of different loops you can take.  The good/bad thing about them is that they are very flat.  It makes for an easier ride, but not the best training if you stick to them alone.  Even with the flat trails, though, both of our rears were ready for a little break and water refill a little more than halfway through.

All smiles

Truly unflattering picture of me.

We rode 27.5 miles and were very glad to have gotten an early start because the heat was climbing by the time we rolled back into my driveway.  Great ride!

After lunch and some picking up around the house, Jeff, D, and I went to the gym.  J wasn't excited to have to wait in one of the open areas outside of the gym while we worked out, but I bribed him with swimming afterwards.  I'm still sticking to my New Rules of Lifting for Women workout plan, and the first exercise on my list was squats.  Last time I'd done 65 pounds without trouble, so I bumped it up to 70.  As soon as I lifted the bar I was shocked by how much heavier that extra 5 pounds made it...I didn't remember 65 being bad at all.  Still, I got through both sets and wondered on and off for the rest of the day what the deal was.

I knew I had put on 70 pounds because I'd checked the weights a couple of times.  I just assumed that my math had been off in the past.  Eventually that afternoon I realized what the problem had been.  I forgot that the bar weighs 45 pounds and had loaded on an additional 70 pounds...so instead of squatting 70 I was doing 115.  Oops.  Turns out I'm stronger than I had thought. :)

In addition to my dumber moments, I've managed to pack a lot into the last couple days. 

Saturday: bike ride, gym session, pool tag with J.

Sunday: We had a big group to play sand volleyball at Jeff's dad's. What a blast! For a while we even had three teams of 5, the rest of the time we just subbed in a player or two.  It's a lot of fun since my older boys are big enough to scare the crap out of me when they hit play with us, and both of them had friends who came along and added to the fun.

Monday: Got a tweet from Patrick while I was still in bed.

Of course I wanted to ride! I sent back that I could around 9:30, but I missed the reply and was in my pajamas when I opened the door at 9:45.  Sorry! 15 minutes later, though, we were out the door.  (Thank you, N, for babysitting.)  We rode almost the same route as I did with Kristy, and while for the most part I felt good, there were definitely times when I had to push to keep up...like any time following a corner.  We rode 28 miles and I, at least, had a great time.  Hopefully I didn't slow down Patrick too much.

I hit the pool again with the boys, and the cool water felt great on a day where the temperature registered around 100.  Of course, everyone else in town had the same idea, but at least we got there before the pool reached capacity.  We had to leave in time for me to start supper and then get N. to club volleyball practice in St. Louis. 

These 2-3 times a week practices in St. Louis are a pain during the school year, but it's kind of nice during the summer because they practice early enough for me to run instead of sitting in a gym for 2 hours.  Of course, running in the afternoon in this area means you're looking at high temps, and Monday was no exception.  The heat was "down to" 94 by the time I put on my running shoes.  I used my 2Toms Blister Shield that Amanda won for me from Laima--I haven't had any blisters since I started using it (yea!) and discovered a new use for it yesterday.

I'm still getting used to the new bike seat, and with doing my two longest rides since March, I'm a little chafed and was already uncomfortable before starting out.  I wasn't looking forward to the sweat stinging my raw inner thighs and rear end, so it occurred to me that maybe the Blister Shield could help me out there, too.  To the casual passer-by, I probably looked a little like Pee Wee Herman in the back row of the movie theater, but I had no problems with stinging or chafing on my very hot, sweaty run, so it was worth it!

The trailhead for Grant's Trail is only about 8 minutes from N's gym, so it's super convenient.

Despite the heat and humidity, the trail was very busy with cyclists, walkers, rollerbladers, and a couple other runners.  The runners definitely looked the most miserable.  I haven't run much at all since the marathon, and I haven't run anything longer than 5 miles since then, so my only goal was to run 6 miles.  Well, to go 6 miles.  With the heat, I was fine with walking if I needed to.  I took it very easy and was very thankful for all of the shady spots.

The worst part was the third mile, not because it was so hard but because I thought it would never end.  The trail is marked in half mile increments and I kept waiting and waiting for that 2.5 mile mark.  It was the longest half mile I've ever run...and of course it was the wide open part of the trail with sun beating down on me.  Finally I saw the trail marker up ahead of me and was praying that I had somehow missed the 2.5 marker.  Yes! 3 miles...I could turn around.

I actually finished a lot stronger than I started...of course, I knew I had an extra water bottle in the car.  Splits were 11:00, 11:05, 11:06, 11:07, 10:53, 10:31.  6 miles, done. :) I was very, very glad to have that one finished, and I made it back just as N's practice had finished.  Good thing I didn't have to walk much!

When I got home, Jeff and I made a quick trip to the gym so that I could do my New Rules workout...perhaps not the best idea to cram all that into one day, but it worked out. 

The Question: Along with the strength training, The New Rules is big on getting plenty of protein.  I'm used to eating for low-fat or just eating a fairly balanced diet, but trying to add protein is proving to be harder for me.  One of their recommendations is whey protein powder, which isn't cheap, so I've been trying (not so successfully) to come up with other ways.  Suggestions?  How do you increase the amount of protein in your diet?