Stones Throw - Triathlon Training Dream Cabin

A few months ago, HS and I sold a couple of condos with the intention of buying a vacation rental instead. We originally looked at a place along Highway 50 but that didn't work out. We had considered the Tahoe area, but any place that was in our price range wasn't necessarily a place we would want to stay at or rent to people. Our next thought was Bear Valley, but when we heard that we would need a snowmobile in order to see the property we changed our mind and stopped in Arnold instead.

Snowy day in Arnold

There was still plenty of snow in Arnold, but you could still get around and it didn't require a snowmobile. As HS navigated the snow lined streets, I scrolled through the Trulia app noting properties to look at. One property caught my eye as I scrolled to the bottom of the screen. It was like no other cabin we had seen. It was modern, and different, and had a huge wall of windows. I started to make note of the address when I happened to look out the window. To my shock, I was looking at the that same cabin. "There it is!" I exclaimed to HS.

Love at first sight 

Click here to see our Airbnb listing with more photos and the reservation calendar.

We drove on to the first property on our list, but called and asked the realtor if we could look at the modern one we just saw. She said sure and set up an appointment that same day in just a few hours. We drove and looked at a couple other places to kill time and grabbed a bite to eat. When we finally got to see the inside of the modern cabin, it was love at first sight for me, HS...well, he eventually grew to love it too. I guess for me, it was the fact that it was brand new and it was entirely different from the ranch style houses we had always lived in.

Special thanks to Kip Machado and Carmie Sanchez at Better Altitude Properties for all of your help!

I love how the windows seem to let the forest inside

We looked at a few more properties after that, but none could compare. The modern cabin was mid-way in our price range and to me it was ideal. I could see it being an attractive property for families looking for a unique property for their vacation. I could also see it being an ideal training location for triathletes looking to blend vacation and training time together. We put an offer in and it was accepted. Now the hard work began trying to setup the place.

Furnishing a brand new cabin - top to bottom
can be very stressful

After finally getting our keys, we spent the next couple of months arguing over design ideas and attempting to buy furniture. Coming to a consensus on how to decorate and what to buy was often difficult. HS and I both had veto power, so many, many, many ideas were squashed before anyone could whip out their credit card to make a purchase.  Eventually the cabin came together and we were able to come up to stay without a long list of chores. We finally had time for a little recreation...I could finally try out my triathlon training dream cabin.

Swim

There are a couple of swimming options up here. One is the pool at the Blue Lake Springs recreation center. They even have designated lap swimming times. I haven't tried to pool out yet, but it looks nice and now that summer is here, there are lots of people. During the winter, however, you could probably have the whole pool to yourself.

I wouldn't recommend this

When things start to warm up, there is also Fly in Lake.  There are other lakes in the area but you can walk to Fly in Lake in a matter of minutes from Stones Throw.

I tried swimming in Fly in Lake a couple of weeks before IRONMAN Santa Rosa 70.3. It would be my one and only OWS before that race. This practice swim was in the beginning of May and the water was absolutely freezing. I had on a full sleeve wetsuit but the water temp still took my breath away. My face and fingers were frozen. I think I lasted about 15 minutes before I got out.

Yesterday, about a month after that first swim, HS and I went back down to the lake. I had packed my full sleeve wetsuit for the weekend, but when I saw all of the kids swimming in the lake, my pride would not allow me to wear it. HS and I walked down to the lake and set up our beach chairs. I saw a man swimming butterfly across the lake (show off). Another guy got out of the lake, stuffed his goggles in his pocket, put on his running shoes and took off running down the street. I guess I'm not the only one that thinks this is a great place to train. I watched the kids playing in the water and finally decided it was time to get in.

Cap & goggles and my Kindle (in case I decided not to swim)

What I like about this lake is that it feels like a safe place to swim. There are four floating islands in the middle of the lake that are about 50-60 yards apart. If I wanted to, I could swim and stop at each one. However, just knowing that they are there is enough for me. I could just keep swimming.

The water on my second swim was much warmer. However, there seemed to be a cold stream of water from the inlet to the lake all the way across to the overflow. I had to swim through that, but once I got over to the water on the far side of the lake, things seemed much better. I was able to get 30 minutes of swimming done this time. The one think I noticed this time was that I actually enjoyed it. There was no pressure to race, all I had to do was swim nice and easy. I cleared my mind and focused on my stroke.

Bike

There are four bedrooms in the cabin. The first one is right off the entry and given that every bedroom has it's own bathroom, this one is used as a bike garage when we come up to stay.

Bike storage

Bikes are always welcome here

Up hill or down hill, but never any flats

We haven't ventured too far out of the neighborhood, but MapMyRide has a lot of interesting routes that I am anxious to try. I was hoping to try one this weekend, but when we arrived at the cabin and started unpacking we realized that HS didn't pack any cycling clothes. I, on the other hand, had two pairs of shorts and two jerseys because, well, you never know. I asked HS if he wanted to borrow a pair of my shorts, but he didn't think my Pearl Izumi Sugar Shorts (my favorite riding shorts) would look good on him. He's probably right...I like them because they are short and you can get a good tan.

LTD Map Jersey and my Sugar Shorts

I also stumbled across something on Facebook called "Bike to Arnold." Apparently you ride from Stockton to Arnold. If I could figure out when they hold this ride, I would definitely want to do it. I think Rodger from S.W.E.A.T Fitness did this ride as well as Robert Fuller from RS Bike Lab. Rodger or Bob, if you're reading this, give me the details.

Run

What can I say about running. You can run anywhere, right? Being from Stockton means that I'm basically running at sea level when I'm home. Hills? What are those? At Stones Throw, I get a slight intro to elevation training. If I really want to up my game I could head up to Bear Valley for a 7,000 ft training run. Even though the area where our cabin is at is only about 4,000 ft., I did notice a change after a week long stay when we were setting up the cabin.

Pre-run selfie on the deck at Stones Throw

Usually, when we are at the cabin working I will run for about an hour. If I turn left at the driveway, I get a nice long climb. I've learned my lesson trying this run on cold legs, so now I will take the dog for a walk first and then I will do this run. I've even set up a Garmin segment for this run called "Barrelling Down Patricia". It's the last half mile to the cabin and it's basically all down hill. If you are brave enough, you can really get going! Hope to see your time on the segment.

Hilly Run/Walk

Relax

When you are done with the swimming, biking and running, there is still plenty to do in this area. HS and I have found several great places to eat in Arnold... Sarafina's Italian Kitchen (make a reservation a week in advance or eat in the bar like we do), the deli at the Chevron staton...just try the "Porker Club", you won't be sorry, but you may have to put in some extra miles to burn off some of the calories.

The "Porker Club"...best gas station food ever!

If your family thinks you've been ignoring them, take them to see Big Trees State Park, the Moaning Caverns, Arnold Rim Trail, or downtown Murphys. Speaking of downtown Murphys, there are some great restaurants and tasting rooms. Our favorites so far have been Alchemy, Murphys Irish Pub, and Twisted Oak Winery. There's so much to do up here, I can't begin to list it all.

One of my favorite places to relax after a workout

Local Events

There are some local events you might want to come up and do:

April - Angels Camp Triathlon (hopefully it will be back next year)
April - Mr. Frog's Wild Ride (century ride)
July - Hernia Hill - 5k, 10k & Half Marathon
September - Bear Valley Triathlon

Baby It's Cold Outside (but I'm Not)

The forecast was clear for Saturday. Not a drop of rain in sight. The only caveat was chilly temps. On Tuesday an email started circulating the office seeing who wanted to ride. The message included a suggestion to “dress warm”. When I got the invite, I sent HS a text to see if he wanted to ride. His response was “It is your birthday, if that’s what you want to do.” Yes, that’s what I want to do! The past few months of marathon training had left me longing for my bike. I was thrilled that the group decided to ride. I told HS that I really wanted to ride and added that I had ordered some new Pearl Izumi gear that I wanted to try out. “Then we’ll go for a ride” he answered.

The group finalized our plans. We were going to do the “Clements Loop” as we call it. It is roughly a 40 mile route with a coffee stop about half way through and some nice rolling hills. We would meet at the boss’s house and head out at 8:30am. Only a few of our group’s normal riders opted out due to existing plans. Nobody opted out due to the weather.

On Thursday, HS, who must have been checking the weather forecast, sent me a text that read “Are you wanting to ride in freezing weather Saturday?” According to him it was going to be around 28 degrees. I got online and checked for myself. My forecast showed a low of 35 with a high of 50. That doesn’t sound too bad. Besides, my cold weather gear was scheduled to be delivered that day and I really, really wanted to try it out...

My Order

Thursday afternoon I was thrilled to see the familiar black and white packaging sitting on the kitchen counter. I tore into the bag and started pull stuff out…wool socks, thermal shoe covers, wool long sleeve shirt, and thermal tights. HS walked over and looked at my pile of gear. I proudly held up each piece and told him what is was.

• Women's Transfer Wool Long Sleeve Cycling Baselayer
• ELITE Softshell Shoe Cover
• ELITE Thermal Wool Socks 
• Women's Sugar Thermal Cycling Tight
• Women's ELITE Thermal Jersey LTD

Lots of good stuff!

HS: “No wonder you don’t care that it’s going to be freezing on Saturday! What am I going to wear?” 

IN MY MIND: Uh, oh. 

ME: “You have stuff.” (Lame) 

HS: “Not like this” (referring to my pile of cold weather gear) 

ME: “We could go shopping” (Weak)

 
HS didn’t want to go shopping and said that he would find something. 

I followed him into our room and into the closet as he started looking for something warm to wear. Thankfully, we had both picked up a pair of  Pearl Izumi AmFIB Cycling Tights (good for temps between 30-45) a couple of seasons ago at REI during their end of season clearance. The tights were a steal and normally a bit too warm for our rides. I decided that I was going to wear these tights on Saturday and save my new pair for warmer weather.

Once HS was able to cobble together a warm enough outfit, I felt a bit better. The only problem was his gloves. I thought he had bought a pair at last year’s REI clearance sale, but he didn’t. I guess I was the only one lucky enough to find decent pair at that sale. I had been itching to try out my gloves for a while, but it just never seem cold enough. The gloves have a temp rating of  0-40 degrees. Usually, if it dips below 40 I stay home and ride the trainer.

Score!

Lets Ride!

Saturday finally rolled around and I was up early airing tires, filling water bottles, and laying out my new gear. My only disappointment was the fact that the striking, screaming pink and yellow jersey that I ordered was shipped from the east coast and would not be arriving for several more days. Meh! I put on my long sleeve wool base layer shirt, my cycling shorts and my wool socks and went to study the thermal jerseys hanging in my closet. 

I considered a white Louis Garneau jersey with pink and black piping that is cute but not very warm. Next up was a vintage Skittles jersey that is warm but fits sort of weird. My last option was a red Performance Bike store brand jersey...it’s warm, but not very interesting. I decided to play it safe and picked the warmer jersey. I then decided that although I was feeling nice and toasty in the house, things would change quickly once we started riding. I decided to wear my Women's ELITE WxB Jacket over the red jersey. This would keep the wind out and hide the red. Problem solved.

Everyone was on time and ready to go. Once we were all out of our vehicles and getting into our cycling gear the question started circulating the group… ”Who’s idea was it to start riding at 8:30???” It was definitely cold. I popped the tag off of my shoe covers and placed them over my shoes. I made quick work of the transition from street shoes to riding shoes. I then zipped up my jacket and snapped on my helmet. Last but not least were my gloves. They may not have matched my outfit, but they were definitely warm. I had a bit of a chill as I waited for everyone else to get ready, but it didn’t seem unbearable.

Ready to go!

HS Bundled Up

The boss's wife came out to see us off. She was on her way to a nice warm yoga class and clearly thought we were crazy. We hit the road and within minutes the pace picked up. I quickly found myself playing "catch up" and wondered if my legs would hold out for an entire ride at this pace. Luckily, I think it was just the guys' attempt to warm up because about a mile or so into the ride the pace settled down and everyone started chatting. Whew!

Nice and Warm

It was a beautiful, clear winter day. To make things ever better was the fact that I was not cold! As we rode along I would hear comments from the guys about cold feet, not being able to feel fingers, and freezing faces. Iced over mud puddles along the road reminded me that we were riding in very, very cold weather (at least for us). I decided to not mention that I was feeling quite comfortable.

Views like this make it hard to ride on the trainer

Having the right gear made all the difference for me on this ride. I've done cold rides before and have been absolutely miserable. That was not the case today. Today I was prepared!

This scarf (from my IRONMAN Vineman goody bag) kept my face warm

My first pair of thermal shoe covers. Why didn't I buy these sooner?

Warmest gloves I have ever used

After completing my first cold weather ride with appropriate gear, I can honestly say I would do it again and again and again. Being outside, riding with friends is so much nicer than being on the trainer!

Post ride beer.
The guys left it outside to chill while we rode :-)

#endureandenjoy365 #ride365 #pearlizumi #REI

A Different New Year's Resolution 2016

Ok, I'm not going to beat around the bush...I'm just going to put this out there and then I will explain why it's a GREAT idea for a resolution...

Resolve to do a TRIATHLON! 

The very first Triathlon 101 graduation race...nothing but smiles :-)

Don't wait, resolve to do one, find a team to train with (more on that below), find a goal race, get started!

Triathlon Resolution Explanation

The other day I overheard some people talking about New Year's resolutions. Of course, if you were like me and you stuffed your face over Christmas, your first thought for a resolution may be to lose weight. Last year the Neilsen Company did a survey and found the top 10 resolutions for 2015.

Source: Nielsen

No. 1 was "Stay fit and healthy". "Lose Weight" was a close second. I believe it is possible to kill two birds with one stone by resolving to do a triathlon. I can't count how many times I've resolved to eat better, exercise more...blah blah blah...only to have the first time I fall off the wagon derail my efforts. I can tell you from experience, there is nothing like signing up for a race that's a little outside your comfort zone to MOTIVATE you!

Below is a picture of a runner named Derek Mitchell. Derek decided to run a 5k every month in 2015.  According to Derek's community Facebook page, he ended up running 20 races and lost 100 pounds along the way. Do you think Derek was a little out of comfort zone when he signed up for his first race? I bet he was. But guess what? Once you register for that race and post your intentions on Facebook or Twitter or whatever, you are committed!

My guess is that you will show for swim practice...you will get out the door and complete your training run instead of sitting on the couch. You want to succeed.  All of your friends and family want you to succeed! All you need to do is try :-)

570 Pound Man Commits to Finishing a 5k Per Month

Wait, Wait, Wait...

Now, before you tell me I'm crazy or you start listing all of the various reasons why you think you cannot do a triathlon, let me just say one thing..."You are wrong!"

Think you are too old? WRONG! I was pushing 45 when I did my very first triathlon and HS was 61 years young when he did his first! S-I-X-T-Y  O-N-E...enough said!

Think you are too out of shape? That's what training is for... more on that below.

Think you don't have the right equipment? Unless you are shoeless and have no access to a bicycle (it's perfectly acceptable to borrow one for your first race) I'm not buying it.

Think you can't swim? Well, if you ask my swim coach, I still can't swim either. If you don't like swimming, join the club, I only do it so I can get on my bike and ride as far away from the water as possible ;-)  LOL  Actually, I've learned to enjoy swimming and I find it to be a great recovery workout. I'm at the age where I can't pound my body day after day...I need breaks and I need recovery workouts.

Local Athletes

If you live in the Lodi - Stockton - Manteca area, the Central Valley Triathlon Club (formerly Lodi Masters Triathletes) will be conducting their annual Triathlon 101 course. This is a 10 week course to get you ready for your graduation race...the Auburn Mini Triathlon.

The Triathlon 101 class will focus on getting you ready for the swim, teaching you bike safety and proper riding technique, as well as teaching you the ins and outs of transition (swim-to-bike and bike-to-run). Provided our winter stays wet and the local reservoirs fill up, we will have open water swim practices at Lake Camanche and a couple of practice triathlons.

Open water swim practice when there was water in Lake Comanche

Practice triathlon

The Auburn Mini Triathlon consists of a 500m swim - 8 mile bike - 2.6 mile run and according to the race organizers is an "excellent novice challenge with diverse terrain, incredible scenery and virtually no car traffic on both the bike and run!" This race is being held on Sunday, May 16, 2016.

NOTE: If you are out of the area and would like to find a club to train with, go to USA Triathlon and check out the club listings.  USA Triathlon also has an extensive list of events or you can go to Active.com to find even more races.

Steps to Success

1) Send me a message for more info on the Triathlon 101 class (I'm still waiting for some of the details from the coach).
2) Post your intention on Facebook. Let everyone know what you are committing to and invite them to join you.
3) Relax and enjoy the journey. Trust me when I tell you that you are going to meet some great people that love sharing the sport with new athletes :-)

#endureandenjoy

P90X3 and Me - Month 2 Wrap-Up

It's funny, when I look back at all of my blog post, I have several favorites...most of them are race reports. However, when I look at the stats,  my top post of all time is about P90X3. Go figure.

My first go at P90X3 is still the top post.

There are a couple of reasons that I decided to do P90X3 over the original P90X or P90X2:

• P90X3 is only 30 minutes long. I loved the original P90X, but with my current marathon training, I just didn't have the time or energy for 60+ minute workouts.

• P90X3 seems to be geared towards athletes. If you read the fitness guide or listen to the comments that Tony Horton makes during the workouts you will notice comments about preparing the body to compete, preventing injury, etc.

Month 1

I was shocked during the first month of P90X3. I figured that I was in the best shape of my life. It had been a month since I had completed Vineman, my first "iron" distance triathlon (2.4 mile swim, 112 bike, 26.2 run) I couldn't have lost that much fitness in just a few weeks. It wasn't like I did Vineman and then stopped working out. I took a few days off for complete rest, but I was back in the pool and running and biking before the week was up...I felt great.

Anyway, that was my frame of mind when I started P90X3...it should be no problem. Well, I was wrong. I struggled with any type of pushup...in fact, yoga turned out to be quite a tough workout for me. How could that be???

Regardless of how tough everything felt, I kept at it. At the end of the first month, I was down 4 lbs. and I was starting to look more toned.

Day 60 - Down Another Pound
(My tan is fading fast LOL)

Month 2

The second month has marked the return of my strength. I can now do push-ups again and I feel fluid and strong during the yoga workout. While I know that the workouts in the second month are supposed to be more challenging than the first month, I actually liked them much better. The eccentric upper and lower routines are great and I was pleasantly surprised by Triometrics. I was certain that Triometrics was going to be 3x worse than P90X Plyometrics, boy was I wrong. Triometrics has some jump training moves but nothing like I was expecting.

TRIOMETRICS

"Old-school plyometrics is jump training. Welcome to Triometrics, X3's state-of-the-art take on a plyo workout that goes far beyond simple jumping. "Plyometrics" here means explosive. It's highly effective means of training muscular efficiency or power. The downside of this training is the time factor. The more explosive force that's created, the more downtime you need. Triometric's proprietary formula utilizes three different levels for every exercise, each targeting a different plysiological response while minimizing the downtime needed between movements. The result is a workout that increases speed and power in a fraction of the time you're used to training."

Speed and power...that's exactly what I need. I have the endurance (or had LOL), but the longer my triathlon training got, the slower I seemed to go. I was concerned that my 47 year old body was just slowing down. Maybe I was to the point where I would never see another PR :-(

This past Friday I went out for a 6 mile run (it was the end of my P90X3 transition week)... my average was sub-8 minute miles. I hadn't run that fast in a long, long time. I was thrilled. The only thing I can attribute this to is P90X3 and workouts like Triometrics.

My weight loss has been very, very slow this month. I am battling to get the last 4 lbs. off before CIM. I am going to have to really watch what I eat over the next 30 days if I want to get to my goal.

Trying to use Photo Booth on my computer to take pics...
didn't work so well LOL

Month 3

I started the third block today. I was tempted to skip it and just stay in bed, but I got up and made my first attempt at "Decelerator".  HS even joined me today. Decelerator was challenging, but it was the perfect cross training work out.

DECELERATOR

"Most athletic injuries occur on landing, not during takeoff, which is why a University of Southampton study concluded deceleration training is a must for general fitness training. Decelerator focuses on this type of training, using strategic angles to force loads on different parts of your anatomy, thus increasing your ability to stabilize and protect muscles, connective tissues, and joints. It also focuses on the strength and explosive power associated with launching into a move, creating a balance between your ability to go up strong and come down safe."

While I am a bit disappointed in my weight loss, I know at this point, it is going to be tough to get those last few pounds off. When I look at my pics though, I see more of a change in this last month than one pound could explain. It could be that I may have lost fat and gained muscle. Who knows...I feel better, I'm performing better, and I look better. Bring on month three!!!