IMSA Tat?

Whatcha think?

The sun design around it is from the Ironman South Africa logo.


Here is the Godsmack sun. These colors would look smokin' with the orange m-dot in the center! I'll have to talk to my designer about this.... ;)


It's very fitting that I incorporate the sun in the design since I have permanent sun damage from the event!

Perspective & Demons

How did I get to this place? This place where when I say...

I worked out for 8 hours this week. I swam a mile. I biked 85 miles. I ran 12 miles. I lifted weights for an hour.

....and I feel lazy?

I think most of you athletes out there reading probably have always been active in one sport or another. But there are a few of you who know where I'm coming from. A few of you who embraced a new, active lifestyle later in life. For me, when I stop and think about where I came from, it just blows my mind to think about where I am today. But I still have my demons.

I was telling a friend of mine about my Ironman experience the other day. A friend who has done many, many Ironman events. I said, "Ya know, now that I've done it, it just doesn't seem like that big of a deal. I mean.... anyone can swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles, or run a marathon. It doesn't take much more beyond that to put them all together". She had to stop me and interject, "You mean in OUR CIRCLE anyone can do those things. In the real world, it is a big deal. Not everyone CAN do those things as easily as people we travel with."

Of course I knew that, but something inside me says, "Well if YOU (I) can do it, anyone can". That's a voice from the past that becomes quieter every day, but is still there. It reminds me of this great line from the movie Mind Hunters, "You don't confront your demons and defeat them. You confront them, then you confront them again, and then you confront them again". Boy, ain't that the truth!

So wherever you're at in your life, know that everyone has doubts. Every. One. Don't let your demons stand between you and your dreams. Confront them, then confront them again... then confront them again.

Exhausted, I am.

So much exciting stuff going on, and I am busier than a one-legged man in a butt kicking contest... or so my Step-dad would say. Lately I'm the kind of busy that leaves me drained at the end of the day, too exhausted to swim/bike/run (but I do it anyway), and my mind still spinning with the "to do" list of the next day as I lay my head on my pillow, hoping for a decent night's sleep.

Annette & I will be coaching another multiple-week session of triathlon workouts for the Starbucks Corporate Triathlon Club, which I'm very excited about. The first session is almost at an end, and we'll be cheering the group on at the Issaquah Sprint Triathlon on May 31st. One girl even has family flying in from out of state to cheer for her! Now THAT is a cool family!!

Cycle U is launching the Cycle U Triathlon Team, which I will be spear-heading over the summer. Like our other teams (road, mtb, cyclocross), this will be mostly a development team to support those taking on triathlon for the first time, or maybe taking on their first longer distance triathlon. Seasoned triathletes are also welcome, and encouraged to join. It's going to be a BLAST!

I'm doing multiple lectures over the next few weeks; one at Cycle U on Monday night (read previous post for details), a few guest speaker sessions at Bastyr University, and two lectures at a building one of my coaching clients manages.

I've picked a departure date for Austin, which gives me nearly three months to be ready, and gets me there about two weeks before classes start. In the meantime I'm throwing a lot of "stuff" up on ebay to lessen the load of the move. No matter how much I get rid of, there always seems to be more "stuff". Funny how that works.

I still have a large number of fabulous coaching-clients who are taking on some big challenges this summer, and I have some very large administration-type projects that I have to complete for Cycle U before my departure as well.

Oh yea, and I have a half-ironman to get trained up for! Lake Stevens 70.3!!

Maybe when graduate school starts I'll be able to take a breather. Hmm... not likely.

Cycle U Lecture Series: Going the Distance!

Going The Distance:Training for Long-distance Triathlon

Looking for a challenge beyond the sprint & olympic-distance triathlon, but unsure how to adapt your training? This lecture is for you! Learn how to efficiently train for long-distance triathlon (half & full Ironman). What does it really take? How do you know you're ready to make the leap?

Including pictures & stories of the good, the bad, and the ugly from Coach Tammy's first Ironman, Ironman South Africa this past April 13th.


Date: Monday, May 19th
Location: Cycle University Main Campus, Magnuson Park, Seattle
Time: 6:30-7:30PM (probably closer to 8pm for those who wish to stay)
Cost: $20
Registration: Click Here

***Attn USAT Certified Coaches: Earn 1.0 CEUs from USAT for attending this lecture***

Back in the Saddle

I'm back to structured training, and it hurts.... oh wait, I'm supposed to say "It feels great!" Haha. It does.

I started Tuesday with a 30-min easy run in the morning...nice and easy, before breakfast. I do not typically workout on an empty stomach, and now I remember why. Ugh. But I had an agenda for the day, and it started with getting up at 6am and going for that run. Then, after a few work errands, I headed to my fitness center for 45 minutes of weight training, easing back in after a couple of months off as I was "peaking" for Ironman. Directly after that session was a 1-hour "track workout" with Annette and our tri training group. That workout consisted of a lot of calistinics, plyometrics, 2 x 800 meters, relays, etc., and kicked my butt!

Yesterday was a very short swim. I'd be embarrassed to tell you how short, but this was my first swim in a month. I've either been very sick, or had an open wound (sorry gang) that kept me out of the pool until now. After a few hours of work, I headed out for a 1:30 bike. I was really feeling my legs from Tuesday nights workout, so do a lot of high cadence work in zone 2, eventually working up to a comfortable zone 3, until some 'hot rods' had to be schooled, then it was zone 4 for a bit.

Last night my friend Beth was in town, and we headed out for dinner at the Sante Fe Cafe on Phinney. I had, what else, the Sante Fe Platter. It was hella spicey! So of course I had to have a Sierra Nevada to wash it down.

I slept like crap last night. Lights out around 10:30, and I woke up at 11:30 thinking it was the next morning. Then I couldn't get back to sleep for a while, and was feeling those pesky cold / bronchitis-from-hell symptoms again. NO!!! No more sick!!! So I'm going to take it a bit easy today. I had a short run planned for mid-morning, then the bike workout for our tri group later tonight. I may skip the run.

Unfortunately, I am going to have to miss the Kirkland Half Marathon due to another commitment. I am extremely disappointed, as this is a great event, and I've done it the past two years. I was really looking forward to doing it this year since I won't be here to do it again. C'est la vie. Since I already registered, I am going to head over there in the morning to pick up my race packet and tech shirt, and cheer everyone on at the start line. One of my clients who is racing the event said he plans to start a rumor that I DNF'd. Thanks Eric. You're a gem. ;)

I mailed in my registration for the Lake Stevens 70.3 (active.com wanted a $15 registration fee! Hello? Excuse me? No thank you). Less than 2 months now to get ready to PR that baby! And PR I will.... big time!

T-Out!

Perfect Day in a Perfect Place

Ah, Seattle has finally found Spring! Yesterday was a perfect day.

It started out with a group workout for the triathletes, most from Starbucks corporate office, that Annette & I are coaching for the Issaquah Sprint Tri coming up on May 31st. I brought the group out to Cycle U to show them our digs, and then tortured them on hills and a running circuit. This group has blossomed into some strong athletes in a very short time! I was (and am) very impressed with them.

Then, after lunch, I took one of my coaching clients on a 2+ hour ride in the glorious sunshine. We climbed a couple long hills, visited Juanita Beach, and soaked up a lot of sun.

When I got home I still felt energized from the day, so I took Brutus for a walk (I'm house-sitting for the boss-man)....

Here's the view from the top of 70th in the View Ridge neighborhood.


We love tulips in Washington state.

Brutus agrees... it was a perfect day :)

'Tammy' Movies

I am a Tammy. I am NOT a Tamara.


My mother tells me she named me after the Debbie Reynolds movies from the 50's. If you think about it, that explains a lot about my love life ;)

Tammy is not a common name. In fact, I do not know another single Tammy. I know 6 Jessicas, 2 of which I share a house with, but no Tammys.

So imagine my amusement when in a 24-hour period I watched not one, but TWO, zombie movies with Tammys! And you know I love me some zombie movies!

The first one was Fido. Sort of "Leave it to Beaver" meets "Night of the Living Dead". The Tammy was not a star in the movie. In fact, she didn't have a single line. She was a zombie love slave. 'Nuff said... It was very amusing. You have to see it.

The next one was a sequel that was actually very good, 28 Weeks Later. What I like most about this movie, and it's predecessor, is that they aren't really about zombies, per se. They're about human fraility, and how we interact with each other in life or death situations. This was a very good movie, and the Tammy had a staring role. I give it 2 thumbs up!

So there are your movie pics for the next rainy day. For those of us in Seattle, that should be, in about 5 minutes.

T-Out!