Pro tip

Sometimes, you just gotta blow your nose. Here's how to properly snot rocket.

Snot rocketing on your long rides is encouraged.

Snot rocketing on your trainer in your living room, I learned, is frowned upon.

From LA to LB, through OC to SD! 107+ Miles, Complete!

Have you ever had a weekend that was nearly perfect? That was this weekend for me. But before I can elaborate on my weekend, I first need to go over the last few weeks.

I've been sick - really sick - for the last month and a half. It started with a harmless cough. At IM Oceanside 70.3, I had cough drops in my mouth during the swim, bike, and run. I blamed the subsequent sickness I had on the half-ironman itself (I get sick after just about every race), but the cough became so persistent that I felt like my lungs were about to come out of my mouth every time I opened it. I had a nose that wouldn't stop running and ears that were plugged for a good week.

I went through three rounds of antibiotics - Each time, it felt like my cough was getting worse. My coworkers would tell me to go home or ask me if I was okay every time I started hacking. Clearly I was in no shape to work out...

So I slowed down significantly - I went from training 9+ hours a week to 2 (if I was lucky). I stayed out of the pool: my lungs couldn't handle it! and I couldn't run as much - I'd start wheezing after a mile. But the marvels of modern medicine kicked in, and this weekend, I finally started to feel more like myself! IT WAS SO NICE.

So, on to the more important things: The story of how we biked to San Diego!

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Last year, when Selena/Lisa/I did our first metric century, Bree and Jared and Trey and John joined the 100-mile club riding from LA to San Diego. When the opportunity came to join them, I couldn't help but pounce on it - LA to SD! Two of my favourite cities in one trip? I'll take it! :)

We met up bright and early Saturday morning - so bright and so early that the sun wasn't even out yet. From Union Station, we biked over to the blue line and took the metro rail to Long Beach.

From Long Beach, we picked up Trey before we started the long journey - Through Seal Beach, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, to Dana Point! John met us up in DP - 

The weather was perfect. It was chilly but not cold, windy but not overbearing. We went at a relaxing pace and always managed to stay close enough to keep tabs on one another. 

Dana Point turned into San Clemente, which: Lo and behold! led to a photo op in front of the Edison International Power Plant. Jared laughed at me when he realized that I stopped, but come on! Naked Gun made these things famous. 

The coolest part (as usual) was biking through Camp Pendleton. I am always constantly surprised to find that there is a such a huge base essentially in our backyard. It's beautiful, secluded, and probably the only place I will ever need to apply in order to ride through. 

We stopped for lunch by Oceanside/Carlsbad at a place called Angelo's Burgers - which, as it turns out, is a chain with very very good lettuce. I think we were all dying of hunger by the time we stopped, so in our delusion, the lettuce became a selling point. I'm sure we talked about it for a good five minutes. We even wrote a glowing yelp review as we ate our food: 

"Lettuce, crispy. 10/10 would come here again."

The key word here is "delusion". 

Nonetheless, it was nice to get a break after 60+ miles of riding. Full of burritos and burgers, we started up again. 

La Costa, Leucadia, Encinitas, Del Mar, La Jolla!

And then the monster. 95 Miles in, John thought it would be funny to take us to Torrey Pines: a gigantic mountain and the only route to get us where we needed to go. 

Not that bad of a climb - 1.5 miles and an elevation of about 500 feet - I thought it was going to be worse than it really was. But it was beautiful!

It was funny, because the ride (for the most part) was relatively flat with a few rolling hills. We were going down a hill when I saw Torrey Pines ahead of us, and I think my eyes doubled in size. We took the long and gradual path versus the steep and narrow one, though I think next time I may try my hand at the steep path. It can't be that bad, can it?

Somehow we ended up at UCSD - I don't know how people get from one point to the other - the campus is so huge I got tired as we biked through it!

We kept riding - Mission Bay, Pacific Beach - It wasn't until we stopped at the Santa Fe Depot and Bree walked into Stone Brewery that I realized we had finished. 107.7 miles. We were 4.3 off from a full iron distance bike ride! I felt great. I didn't cramp up (though my back did start hurting around mile 90), and we had time to enjoy an IPA with John before he caught his train home. 

What a fun ride and a fun trip!

As I always say - it didn't happen unless Strava said it did. With that said:

And how did we celebrate? Food at The Crack Shack, but more importantly, ICE CREAM (ok, Gelato) -

• | 05.13.2016 | • #everydayisicecreamday

A photo posted by winja. (@_winja) on May 14, 2016 at 8:28pm PDT

Good times. We took the Amtrak back home - I ate half a 14oz bag of Skittles (Think 5 - 6 big handfuls) and was still able to sleep the rest of the way home. To many more centuries!

Race Report: Winja's Ironman 70.3 Oceanside (April 2, 2016)

So... let me get a few things out of the way before I start.

1. I love the ocean. I have always loved the ocean. When I was younger, I truly believed that if I didn't prune from being in the water too long, I'd find a way to live in the ocean for the rest of my life. I guess the whole eating and breathing underwater thing would be an issue too, but as a child, who thinks of those things?!
2. I am a runner. I've been running on and off for the last 15 years. If you asked me to run a marathon tomorrow, I'd hesitate a little, but I'd probably end up doing it. 
3. I did not train as much as I should have. I really should have trained more. 

Oceanside was my second 70.3. Unlike Vineman last year, I knew what I was getting myself into. I knew the amount of work that it would take to do the half, and I knew how I'd feel transitioning into each event. 

Also unlike Vineman last year - I didn't train as much. The winter season was really hard for me. I kept getting sick (my immune system has always been weak), and I never wanted to go to the pool because it was always so cold! With that said, however, I did work out a lot, and I did put in a lot of effort: I did my first full century ride, I ran a half marathon the day after (!), and I even did the LA Marathon! Technically I should have been prepared. But I also didn't brick my training, and those swims! I should have swum more. 

---

Now, onto Oceanside. 

PRE RACE PREP

This was a race that Selena, Lisa, and I all agreed to sign up for. It was going to be our A-race for the year (before I haphazardly decided that I wanted to do a full), and we were so excited for it! The thing I love most about these women is their drive and how they are always motivating me to be my best. I would not have wanted to go into this race any other way. 

I drove down to Oceanside Friday morning (I actually forgot that the race was on a Saturday and not on a Sunday, which really threw me off) - Athlete check-in was seamless, and many of the volunteers were from Camp Pendleton. They were all so sweet and encouraging. "Good Luck"s all around!

The swag was great too - Oceanside's official 70.3 shirt was a grey tech shirt, and we were given a coupon to head over to the IM Merch tent to pick up our bags. 

Transition and the finish line were about a mile apart, so we had to drop off our bikes at transition the day before. I thought about leaving my gear there, but as no one else was doing that, I said bye to my bike and went to CalTri's team dinner instead. 

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RACE DAY

Those who know me well know that I am early to just about everything. EVERYTHING. I hate pushing things to the last minute because then I can't prep! It's also one of the main reasons why I overpack. I always want to have a plan B and plan C in case plan A backfires. 

I woke up around 3 am, checked out of my hotel at 4, and walked the .8 miles to transition at 4:30. Transition opened at 4:45, so I had plenty of time to assess the area, set up my stuff, and get my leg and arm marked for the race. 

At 6:30, we were pushed out of transition into a holding area, and slowly we filed into a chute to wait for our turn to get into the water. I was freezing. Outside, it was 52 degrees. Luckily, the water was 10 degrees warmer at 62. You could hear the sighs of relief as we all filed in. We swam over to the starting line, and at 7:17, we were off!

The swim was slow for me. I felt comfortable the whole time, and in retrospect I should have tried a little harder. Sighting was easy, but as soon as we turned, the sun was in my eyes. Tinted goggles are the best invention ever. There was a little chop at the turn as well, but for the most part, the water was calm. 

As we ran out of the water, I could tell that the swim was a little longer than it should have been (only by a little bit, according to my watch). We had to run up the same chute we were shuttled out of earlier, and back intro transition. 

The bike was good but challenging. I've done 2,000ft climbs before, but I don't think I was anticipating going up the side of a mountain at mile 35. I watched as grown men got off their bikes and walked up. As Selena says, "If you can bike it, I won't let you walk it" - so I didn't. My back was aching by the time I hit mile 25. I constantly had to get up off the saddle to stretch. On one of the smaller hills, I cross-chained and my chain fell off. Not good. I freaked out a little, thinking my chain had broken, but it was a quick fix and I managed to get going in less than a minute. 

There were a few points that were different about this course - the no pass zones - once on a bike trail and the other on a 25 mph speed limit going downhill. Safety precautions supposedly because of a death in IMCali's first ever race, so completely understood, but some of the athletes were very rude about it and called out remarks about cyclists being too slow, etc. Not cool. The headwinds on the way back made for a slower ride into transition. 

With that said: the ride was amazing. We got to go into Camp Pendleton! Marines were on just about every corner, and though many were stoic, others cheered and told us we were doing a great job. It was interesting to get a different look at how a city like that operated, and I loved the idea of riding in a place that most people aren't able to.

Transition from the bike to the run was fine. I was a little slower because I wanted to ensure that I applied enough sunblock. I guess it didn't help, because I'm now peeling - my face, my back - it's great.

The run consisted of 2 roughly-6.5mile loops. The first loop was longer than the second due to construction, which is why the finish line was a mile away from transition. I had a cramp in my left leg miles 1 - 6. It was difficult to even put my leg on the ground. It also turns out that my first mile was incredibly faster than it should have been.

Either way - I'm thankful for the relatively flat run course. There were about 4 medium sized hills, which many walked up. Seeing those hills from far away were kind of demoralizing, but I made it over them! Another interesting point was running back toward the finish line and seeing the masses of people, only to run back out to start your second loop and seeing nothing but runners. I remember the way I felt at mile 11 of my last 70.3 - it was so hard to get to the end. With the run this time, I took it easy: the sun was beating down on us and there was no shade whatsoever. 

The last half mile could not have gone any better. One of the things I love to do during my races is read all the signs: "You're only half crazy!" "Beer and Pizza at the end" "Smile if you just laid one" - they're great. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a sign that said "Gooooo Winja703! Bathroom 1 mile -->" and I thought I was hallucinating. I thought, "Wow! Someone else has my nickname... and my hashtag.. wait a minute" - IT WAS PATRICK! 

A sight for sore eyes, really. It's hard to go to a race by yourself without having your support team. My sister - up until this past race - had been my go to: My schlepper of transition bags, my cheer squad - my "Eye of the Tiger" prep-singer. This is the only time I'll say it: Patrick, I'm glad you were there. 

Okay, now that the sappiness is out of the way: I FINISHED! I was a lot slower than my first half, which goes to show that training goes a long way - I will definitely be amping it up in preparation for Vineman. 

Also, special thanks to Alice and friends for making their way to Oceanside to see me after I finished! 

Last and especially not least, I want to express my elation regarding the two other pieces of my Team Shiiicago pie: both Selena and Lisa were finishers as well!

Kudos to these ladies - we are truly a triple threat, and I'm so glad I have them to motivate me and push me the way they always do. So much love for them!

With my first race of the season out of the way, the only route to go is up. I can now say I'm a 2x70.3 athlete!

How does one celebrate an amazing feat? Disneyland. 

Yes. I drove to Disneyland right after my half. No regrets. 

Results here. 

Packing for a Half-Ironman

My biggest dilemma for this Saturday's Oceanside 70.3 is what I'm going to pack. I'll admit it - No matter where I go, I overpack. Why would I want to be in a position where I'm unprepared? In my mind, I envision being in each moment during the race, and I pack accordingly. This is what I'm bringing with me this weekend:

General

• Headlamp - It's gonna be dark
• Tri Top, shorts, and flip flops. I'll be wearing these to the race, but I have to remember to pack them before I leave for Oside!
• Garmin Forerunner 920xt
• Heart Rate Monitor (I Forgot this at my last 70.3 and wanted to cry)
• Garmin Vivosmart HR (yes, I want to bring both Garmins - they serve different purposes outside of the nasty tans I'll get)
• Chamois butter? I don't use this but it seems like everyone else does. 

Transition Area

• Bike Pump - they're asking us to drop off our bikes the day before
• Towel to lay on ground

Nutrition for Swim:

• I usually pack a coconut water to drink before my race. I sip this and do most of my hydrating the night before. 
• Some sort of fruit - I'll eat this as I walk in to drop off my stuff. Usually an Apple or a nectarine. 
• Peanut Butter and Jelly - this is breakfast at 3am. 
• Nuun Tabs. These things are magic in my water. 

Swim

• Sunblock
• Wetsuit
• Tri-Glide
• Goggles
• Swim Cap from Ironman
• Towel
• Chapstick - I swear by Carmex
• Water Bottle to clean off feet

T1

• I eat a Clif Bar and down a salt tab before I leave. 
• I will drink water because swimming makes me thirsty. If I have enough coconut water from before I'll usually sip some of this because it hydrates me more than water does. 
• Sunblock. Lots of spraying sunblock. 

Bike

• My bike. I should definitely bring my bike. 
• Helmet
• Sunglasses
• Shoes
• Race belt
• Race Number Bib
• Bike Shoes
• Bike Socks
• Riding Cap
• Gloves
• Water Bottle for Electrolytes
• Disposable Water Bottle to trade volunteers with
• Chapstick - I swear by Carmex
• Jersey, loaded with my nutrition in the back
• Clif Bar 
• Honey Stinger Waffles (2)
• Honey Stinger Chews
• Jelly Belly Sport Beans
• Extra Nuun Tabs
• Electrolytes - SaltStick Tabs, Hammer Endurolytes to take - usually one per hour on the ride. 
• The goal is to consume about 250 calories every hour I'm on the bike. 

T2

• I will probably eat some Honey Stinger chews and drink a bit of water here. No real prep because there will be aid stops on the run. 
• Sunblock
• Double check for race belt
• Switch to running shoes
• Grab my hat!

Run

• Hat
• Sunglasses
• More sunblock
• Running Shoes
• Running Socks
• Chapstick - I swear by Carmex

Finish

• Compression Socks
• Shirt to change into

See? I did it again! I overpacked. But I'm going to be so full and so prepared. I'm really excited! Thoughts? AM I MISSING ANYTHING?!

Listen to Your Body

Everyone I know tells me that I'm impulsive. 100-mile bike ride? Sure. Marathon without training? Sure. Swim 2 miles on a Friday? Sure.

Normally I'm okay after all this stuff. A little soreness never hurt anyone. But a little less than 2 years ago, about... Two days after I signed up for my first triathlon, soreness was the least of my worries.

David, Henry, and I went for my first bike ride EVER. My excitement compounded with my nervousness led to anxiety, which triggered a panic attack, and ultimately gave me an asthma attack. My heart felt like it wanted to rip itself out of my chest.

A trip to urgent care ended up with me having to be taken to the hospital crying of chest pains. Despite multiple tests, x-rays, and EKGs, doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong. When I followed up with my primary care physician a few days later, they prescribed me an inhaler and to be a little more careful.

Here's the thing: I know I stress my body out a lot. I don't rest enough between double workouts, and sometimes when I work out, I'll double up the workout just to see if I can do it. My body usually cooperates and will react with soreness, but you can imagine my surprise when three weeks ago, my chest began hurting again.

At first, it was a dull gnawing pain. Last week, it felt like my lungs were filling past capacity and pressing against my chest. The other day, during my swim, I was taking in a breath between strokes and felt like someone stuck a needle into my heart.

Every time, the pain would last 10 minutes at most and then I'd forget about it. Still, these are signs I need to pay attention to. Your body doesn't complain if it's OK. It tells you you need to listen.

This morning I woke up at 4:30 to get ready for the LA Tri Series triathlon, but a sharp chest pain led me to drive myself to urgent care instead. I'm irritated because I know something is wrong with my body, but to doctor chalked it up to "getting older and creakier."

REALLY?!

He sent me off without diagnosing anything. But really, unless I'm having a heart attack, he says it's muscle soreness. I don't believe him.

What do you do when you're in my position? Seek out another doctor? Am I just a hypochondriac?

Sigh. Trying to listen to my body here, y'all. Bueller?

The Long Game

My motto is always "I'm here to complete, not to compete." That said, of course I crave the podium. And I've got a plan for sports immortality.

My current time for a 50 Free in short course meters (SCM) is a 28.10. The US Master Swimming record for 50 Free SCM for men, 85-89 is a 36.26. If I can maintain my time for roughly the next 45 years, I might have a shot at breaking that record.

*fingers crossed*

Winja's LA Marathon Recap

Normally, I hinge my workouts on how good I feel. Sometimes a 4 mile workout can turn into 11 miles if I feel up for it. Other times, a 6 mile workout turns into 2 because I just... can't.

Two weeks ago, I signed up for the LA marathon. I don't know what compelled me to - I think it was part FOMO and part... just not having anything planned for Valentine's Day. Either way, everyone who knows me knows that I am impulsive, and that if I put my mind to something, it happens. So with that said...

Last Sunday, I did the LA Marathon. Alice and I woke up at the crack of dawn. We dressed in anticipation for warm weather because the weather predicted it, but the morning was bone-chilling cold for this SoCal girl. We drove to Santa Monica to drop off the car, then shuttled back over to the starting line.

25,000 people crammed themselves into Dodger Stadium, and around 7am, we were off! 

Lesson #1: Find a corral. It appears that if you don't get into a corral, you're stuck with the masses. And the masses? They are people of all different paces who don't mind if their first mile is 14 minutes or 30. I weaved in hopes of getting away from the glob of people, but I think that probably tired me out more. Nonetheless, my first 5 miles were solid at sub-10 each mile. I felt great!

Lesson #2: Hydrate. I didn't think I needed water at every station, but in retrospect, I probably should have taken in a little more every time I did stop. I don't usually drink water during my 13-mile runs, so stopping for water meant actually reminding myself that water was necessary. 

Lesson #3: Sunblock. Seriously, the sun does damage. I have a racerback tan that will probably be on my back for the next 6 months. I applied sunblock before we started, but prolonged exposure and fatigue (and probably laziness and eagerness to finish) meant that I didn't reapply and I ended up burning anyway. 

I'm sure there are more lessons, but this post is getting too long. All in all, the marathon was great. Despite a lack of training, I did better than I thought I would. I didn't hit a wall at mile 18 - running through DTLA was gorgeous. Hollywood was searing hot, WeHo was the best in terms of cheer sections, Century City brought back memories of when I used to work at FOX, and Santa Monica - Santa Monica was a huge sigh of relief. 

I hit that wall at mile 22. I felt like I had run enough, and I felt like no amount of water would hydrate me. I was irritated, my thighs were tight, and my right arm had fallen asleep (does that happen to anyone else?) - I just wanted to be done. 

But then! Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the DTLA Running Group. Cutie pie Abel Bourbois rubbed Tiger Balm on my thighs, blew me a kiss, and I was on my way after a few of the other peeps at the tent gave me a pep talk and a handful of ice. 4 more miles to freedom. 

A miraculous thing happens when you run the same marathon course twice: you think about the way you feel at certain points on the course. As I ran the last stretch to finish line, I remembered how I felt the year prior - so relieved to be done and so proud of myself for attempting a feat even my doctor said I wouldn't be able to handle.

As you know by now, I finished!

• | 02.14.2016 | • A year ago, I was still in physical therapy with back pain that made me cry myself to sleep at night. It's amazing how time can change a situation. Since then, I've done 7 triathlons, 3 half marathons, 2 swim meets, a half-ironman, a century, and today!!!! Today I completed my second marathon in less than a year. I think about the things I put my body through, and still I find myself astounded by what it's able to handle. #LAMarathon, you were perfect. #werunla #running #winja1406

A photo posted by winja. (@_winja) on Feb 14, 2016 at 3:37pm PST

In 2005, it took me over 8 hours to do my first marathon. I sprained my ankle at mile 5 and was determined to finish, so I walked 21 miles until I did. Last year, in 2015, I did the marathon despite Doctor's orders not to. It took me a little over 6 hours to finish. This year, I didn't train, but my body was able to keep up and I finished (unofficially) in 4:41:25. Alice says I'm doing a sub-4 next year. Keep dreaming, Alice =P

Stephane's only challenge to me was to finish before noon, and with a finish time of 11:45 am, I'm still smiling ear to ear. To many more marathons!