"Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm"

I should probably finish the post I already have half written - and I will [maybe], but not right now...

Because lets face it... there isn't anything on my mind except for that damn bike.

But first, lets pay a little bit of catchup... and lets start with the most important.

Since signing up for theChesapeakeMan, they have recently partnered up with Make A Wish Foundation - Mid Atlantic. I was given the option to fundraise, which I -without a doubt- immediatedly signed up for. SO! Here is my little spiel [thank you for the spelling Siobhan!]

The mission of Make-A-Wish® Mid-Atlantic Foundation is to grant the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. As I train for this event, I am reminded of the wish kids that the Foundation serves and that my participation will help fund the greatest wish of a child.

Completing a 140.6 triathlon has been a goal of mine for several years, and I am blessed to be able to go after one of my dreams. I have decided to raise money while training in hope that I am able to help make the dreams of others come true as well. The average cost of a wish in the Mid-Atlantic region is $7,500 and every dollar counts. Please considering donating; I would truly appreciate it.

To make a donation, please visit my personal page http://www.midatlantic-community.org/amychrest You can donate online or print an offline donation form and mail your contribution to: Make-A-Wish Foundation of the Mid-Atlantic, 5272 River Rd. Suite 700, Bethesda, MD 20816.

THANKS! :) :) :)

Great, now that you all have donated... let us continue on.

Last Sunday [not yesterday because I am no good at posting more often] was an awesome day. I woke up early and headed down Virginia's way to the Hurt Locker.. which I suuppppose is more commonly known as the Miller household. Jared and I hooked up our bikes to the trainers and did a Half Ironman Spinerval DVD for 3 hours. Poor Siobhan not only became the designated water girl, but also had to listen to us complain our painful private bits... because truth be told - those seats were not made for comfort. It was my first true experience on the bike for any decent amount of time because I just got some cycle shorts to wear [which made a big difference]... although I still wouldn't say I was sitting on cloud nine.

Afterwards.. and after some food [mistake yet needed] Siobhan and I hit the pavement for a 6 mile run... which turned out to be a lot better than I was expecting it to be. I guess the lunch break allowed for my lady bits.. and I suppose my legs... to feel better for the run.

It wasn't even that the workouts were good [and they were!] but the company was great... which made the day such an awesome one. I hope to make another trip to the Hurt Locker soon... and more often... for future training sessions.

This week I started making upper body weight training part of my routine during my M/W/F strength training sessions, which feels great. That was always my favorite part of a workout, and something I have missed as I haven't really done in the last 2point5 months. this = happy Amy.

Nothing too exciting the rest of the week in terms of workouts.... just some Running..Biking..Swimming..No Sleep.. surpise surprise, yes?

and then... it was Friday. I somehow made it through work... but I can't quite say the same for the train ride home. I fell asleep, but thankfully I didn't miss my stop. A strength training session and some fun were in my plans for the night as I wanted to go see Redline Addiction at Growlers. After dinner, I made the mistake of sitting on my bed to check the computer ... 45 minutes later I woke up with my glasses stuck to my face and a sexy outline imprinted on my face. But I got up! I got my gym clothes on... aannndd I sat back down for what meant to be another second ... another mistake. I don't even remember passing out, but I did... and I was out for the night.
I was burnt out.
and I was still burnt out come Saturday. I tried so hard to get up..to get moving.. to get my butt on that bike...
there was absolutley no way.
I was not only burnt out, I was painfully burnt out. My eyes hurt to open... I couldn't...and I didn't move. Not to workout at least. It was an unplanned.. and much needed .... day off.

Sunday...
sunday sunday sunday...
I looked out the window in the morning to check the weather.... Oh how the sun was out! Today.. this is the day I am finally going to get my bike on the road... or at least the path around the lake where I wouldn't have to worry about stopping as much, and it is fairly flat.
I said it on here before, and I knew what laid ahead of me.... I was going to fall...
What I didn't say, though, was that there was always a little bit of hope in me that it just wouldn't happen to me.
oh it did.
and it happened in the first 10 seconds.

Where my first fall was.

If I was nervous before those 10 seconds, I was terrified after that. Actually, I think terrified is an understatement. The lake is close to my house... but it is also down a pretty steep hill. I decided at that point that I would walk my bike to the lake... and that is what I did.
With it being a beautiful Sunday morning, the path had a good amount of people on it....
"I should probably let these dogs walk by first"
"Oh, there are children coming on scooters, I should wait for them too"
I was making up every and any excuse I could to not clip in that foot. I stood there straddling my bike with an obvious fear in my eyes... so much so that a lady walking by stopped and asked if I was okay.
"Minus my damaged pride, I am okay"... alright - I didn't actually say that - but I should have.. I was at least thinking it.
Once the coast was clear, I went for it. I clipped one foot in, and left it at that. I pedaled with my right foot unclipped.
Within a minute I learned a new lesson, when you want to break, it doesn't help to accidently push the gear changer out of sheer panic - and not the break. Thankfully my reaction time came quicker than the tree and I was safe.
I eventually got to a pretty flat - semi soft looking patch of grass, and I thought that if I was going to fall, that would be a good place. And it was there that I decided to practice.. and fall some more.
The wind from the lake was starting to get to me, and it was colder then I thought it would be [and dressed for]. So with that, and of course just being tired of the struggle - I decided to head home.
...aaannndd perhaps it was also because there was a little boy biking circles around me... either way - I was out of there.
"I don't remember it being this hard when you're little... or as terrifying".
Still burnt out, I fell asleep for a while as I rested my now aching body from [literally] hitting the pavement. Somehow I managed to get myself moving again and make it to the pool for an afternoon swim... which turned out a lot better then I was expecting. I did 5050yards .. it was easy and it went by quickly. I was in a groove and I actually enjoyed it.
... expect for the lane sharing idiot who swam right into me.
Jerk.
The swim tired me out more then I was expecting, so I opted out of an additional bike ride [on the trainer this go around!!] and I pushed it to this morning.
I set my alarm for 4:15 - That would get me down and on my bike by 5:00 and allow me to ride from 5:00 - 6:30.
I started to doze off to sleep and images of me on my bike came into my mind. I did one of those awful jump up/wake up things when in the dream I fell off my bike.
dream... it was a nightmare!
... yet humorious at the same time... so I texted my friend to talk about it. He asked if I was going to wear my helmet to bed... Jerk.
..... I think I may have to.
But after some serious convesation I realized this:
"Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm"

I reached over, grabbed my phone, and set my alarm to 3:45. If I got on my bike by 4:30 I would give myself an extra half hour to ride outside. The strange part was that I became excited about giving it another try. Right now it may be embarrassing, frusterating, defeating - but with all things - you'll get used to it... over time. Overcoming is the exciting part... and the most important part.
I just had to go out there and do it.. and this is what I did.

It is a good thing there aren't many people out at 6am... not only because there were less witnesses to my falls, but because they didn't have to see my disastrous outfit. BUT! I was ready this time.... slightly more padded, slightly warmer dressed... and a bit more ridiculous looking.

Bring it bike!

... buuttt I suppose you should be careful what you ask for ....

I hesitated less as I hopped right up onto the bike... aannndd just as quickly I was down again ... horrific stumble that popped off the chain ... I still do not have any bike maintance knowledge... I haven't made it back to the bike shop for that lesson yet.
I didn't turn around and go home though... and after some curses in the dark and a little bit of elbow grease - I managed to get it back on.

I was determined to keep at it. I made it down the hill, and I was on my way back up when I made the mistake of unclipping my foot. Trying to get started on a hill held true as a greater challenge. I tumbled over in attempt. Eventually all my little attempts got me to the top, even though I never did successfully clip my second foot in - this I have a great deal of trouble with.  It was at that point that I threw in the towel, because it was 6:30 ... and I had to get ready for work.

And it is here I sit... aching...with nothing on my mind but that damn bike.