Who did i think i was, Lance Armstrong?!

Leading up to the weekend, I was nervous for the fact that I wasn't nervous for my upcoming race. I had this master plan in my mind that doing the Boston Marathon then following it up with Wildflower 70.3 twelve days later would be great mental and physical training for Ironman Philippines 70.3 Cebu (coming up in August).

My husband and I arrived at the campsite midday Friday and set up camp. We absolutely love camping, so this weekend was an opportunity for us to enjoy 2 of our loves. The weather was beautiful and not as strenuous as previous years so I had a sense of excitement for a solid race.

The start of the race was pretty calm. I loved getting the chance to geek out when I saw 3-time Wildflower champs, Jesse Thomas and Heather Jackson, setting up their bikes. It was also great to see Yu Hsiao before the race. Just following his journey toward becoming an elite athlete has been so fun to witness (he did fantastic at the race by the way!) I had a great time getting ready with my husband and helping him strategize his day. It was such a good spirited, fun morning. Maybe it was the fact that I had been telling myself this was just a training race or that I had told myself not to expect much knowing that I just put my heart out on the Boston course less than 2 weeks ago. Either way, the swim began and I felt calm - not typical for me as swimming creates anxiety. The water conditions were exponentially better than last year's swim (which was black and muddy). But while this swim was calm, I had to really adjust my stroke since early on, I was having pain in my hip flexors. The pain was manageable so I just focused on keeping a calm pace. I finished with lots of energy and ran my way up the ramp.

BTW, I positioned my run transition stuff as far up as I could since having my transition stuff at the bottom of the ramp last year led to a really long run up the ramp. Breaking things up made a huge difference in how I felt. Again, could also be how calm I felt and made decisions such as sitting down and taking my time to get everything and catch my breath. But those actions lead to a strong 2.2 mile run to the bike transition area.

I was eager to get to my bike. My bike is typically my strength. I love crushing it on the bike, especially at Wildflower. But this day, my body was off.  I continued to feel pain in my hip flexor with every foot stroke. This was exaggerated when I was in the aero position, which was tough since I needed to be stay in that position since there was consistent headwinds throughout the day. I usually love the Wildflower bike course but this time I was in a dark place. I was worried that this type pain was the injury kind that if I do too much to it, it can possibly take me out of commission for a few weeks. I kept asking myself "WTF was I thinking? I just ran a marathon and now I'm doing Wildflower long course? Who did I think I was, Lance Armstrong?!" That, I am not! And this race let me know that!

By mile 30 of the bike, I let out a tear or two. Adjusted my race goal of a podium finish and reminded myself that this was supposed to be a practice race. It hurt watching a few ladies pass me but I just had to suck it up. There's no gain in this for me if I injure myself just to keep up with them. I decided to keep riding and hope for the hip flexor pain to go away during the run portion of the race.

Also, in the midst of this race was the excitement of the Mayweather vs Pacquiao fight. So, whenever I needed a boost, I would sing Lupang Hiniran (the Philippine National Anthem) and think of what Pacquiao would do. That really helped me push through :)

Nasty Grade was not as terrible as it has been in past years but I'm sure it's because leading up to this point, I took the previous miles at an easier pace and then I was off on the run.

I was looking forward to this run! Finally, a leg of the race that didn't hurt my hips! I reminded myself that this race was meant to challenge my mind and body. I needed to accept the heat and learn how to move past it. I worked on keeping my heart rate low and continue moving at a good pace. There were some uphills that just aggravated my calves and ankle, so I walked.  Still, I'm happy with my run. It wasn't as fast as I know that I am capable of but I am glad that I pushed through most of it and felt strong especially in the last 4 miles.

Overall, I am happy with what I was able to pull off that day. This was my fastest Wildflower long course time (6:02) but it makes me eager to come back knowing that I can do so much more if I made this a priority race! I ranked 10th  in my age group and 26th overall female. The race was fun and I was incredibly excited to get the chance to cheer on my husband as he finished his first long course Wildflower! I am so proud of him and I was in tears thinking of how much he was able to push through for this race!

So, if there is a lesson to be learned here, it would be, think twice before signing up for a marathon and a challenging half ironman twelve days apart :)

We did it!