AU REVOIR, GOODBYE, AUF WIEDERSEHEN 2008

Very happy to see this one go.... It has been a very hard year for me both physically & mentally.

I was hyper stressed from January to April working on finishing my Ph.D. in Environmental Chemistry. This is my proudest life accomplishment so far and something that was really hard to do. I was very hopeful for a great year after my thesis defense but it only went downward from there.

I moved back home, I struggeled to find a job, I was injured and could barely run (just enough to keep my sanity). Then 2 months and a half ago I had to stop running completely, became really depressed and started packing on the pounds (again! I had lost 60 lbs in 2006)...

I had envisoned something different for my life once I graduated from grad shool.

Now, with 2 job possibilities in front of me and a foot that is not so f*cked anymore, I am looking at 2009 with a more positive eye. Good things happen to those who wait they say... I waited long enough, it is my turn, 2009 be kind with me!

Thanks you all for always coming back to read my posts. I appreciate your support through my 'stupid foot' injury!

Happy New Year everyone!

p-s I've just started a new training plan, I'll talk about it in another post! =)

A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE!

I just came back from my first run in 2 months 15 days and 4 hours!

It was totally BLISSFUL!!! I would go as far as saying ORGASMIC!! LOL

We had a lot of rain yesterday and there is ice all over Montreal today but it is mainly concentrated on the sidewalks. So my Dad and I went out in a mild and sunny -10°C (14 F). My foot/ankle was feeling rusty but great, I had a stupid grin on my face the whole time. =) We ran a very slow 1.6 miles in 20:21. It was my Dad first outside run since November 4th, he was being a winter wuss and doing all his runs on the treadmill. Today's run convinced him to get back outside and enjoy winter!

I feel like the old me is back, running makes me so happy. I'm hoping this is the end of my injuries. I'll be reasonable and only run 2 times 20-30 mins for a few weeks and see how it goes.

As far as yesterday's training on the bike.... I ended being unable to sleep from 3-6AM the night before (hence me posting at 4:46AM!). I went on the trainer with a 30 mins goal in mind.

-10 mins warm-up (went well)
-10 mins speed session with 30 sec hard/30 sec easy (awful!)
-10 mins cool-down (didn't get to do it)

After 5 mins of the speed session, I felt like I was going to faint or puke or both. I guess the lack of sleep and skipping breakfast wasn't working for me.... So, I decided to stop after 20 mins. Back on the bike tomorrow!

HAVE A GOOD CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

JOYEUX NOËL ~ MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

I've been a bad blogger and haven't updated my blog since I came back from Windsor on Sunday. I haven't been doing much exercice wise so I felt I had nothing to report...

But I FINALLY fixed my bike trainer (well my Dad fixed it!) so I will be able to hop back on tomorrow! I will be doing one of Leana short speed training from her coach's training schedule as she kindly sent me the info.

I will be doing my first run in 2 months tomorrow to celebrate Christmas and see where my foot is at. I don't have any plantar fasciitis pain anymore. I do feel my ankle is weird but as the doctor told me this is a normal healing process after suffering from PF for more than a year and changing my walking to put less pressure on my heel.

I won't be starting back full force, I learned my lesson with the first cortisone injection. I have a plan.... I will get back to running with 2 easy runs per week maximum, the rest will be done on the bike and back in the pool (which is close for Christmas right now).

My goal is to participate in my favorite event of the year as a relay participant (I'm not that insane, 30K is way too much coming back from an injury!). I will be doing the first 15K while my friend Pat will be doing the last 15K. I am thinking that even if I am not at a 15K long run by the end of March, I can still run as far as I can and walk the rest. This will be my comeback race!! WOOHOO!! =) Our team name will be "Footloose and fancy feet" as she also had a foot problem (stress fracture).

I've also had some great news on the job front!!! The interview where I thought I did so horribly.... well I GOT THE JOB!!!!!! I couldn't believe it when the women from the City of Montreal called me yesterday! I went to meet some of the people I would work with this morning and everyone was really nice and welcoming to me. I did tell them, I had another job offer on the table so I needed time to decide. And she told me I have until January 12 to make a decision. This is a totally different job than the post-doc in Ottawa. I would not be in the laboratory doing research, I would be working on analysing atmospheric and aquatic pollutants and changing laws accordingly. Seems very interesting but also very different than what I know (change is scary!) while the post-doc would be lab research which I have done for the last 5 years.

The position at the City of Montreal is a unionized position as a chemist at the City of Montreal. It is well paid, very flexible hours and a permanent position.... it will be very hard to decide. Very thankful this is Christmas time and I have more time to think about it.... Anyhow, I will stop here, it is 5AM and I'Ve been up since 3AM. Thinking about my job dilemma LOL Time to go back to bed!!

I wish everyone a Merry Christmas, enjoy the time with your families, they are what Holidays are all about =)

I'M SO EXCITED!

1- I was able to embed a video here!! YIPPEE!!!
2- I'm going back to Windsor on Monday, it is my best friend 30th Birthday and I want to be there to celebrate with her!
3- Season 7 of 24 is coming up real soon, oh Jack I love you!! ;-)

YOU & ME GIRLFRIEND!!

I actually feel like I have something in common with Oprah now... and it is not her fortune or kick ass marathon time!!




p-s I don't know how to add a video properly so this is my lame attempt! (FIXED!!!)

I went on the trainer today, a big 20 mins, it feels weird. The chain is weird. I dunno if I set it up right. It seems very hard to pedal and mechanical... hard to explain. I need a man to take care of this shiz!

I'M ALIVE ....

Survived the whole stomach bug, now feeling like a cold is coming my way. One day I will train again, I swear ;-)

I went to my local bike shop to get my bike tube fixes, now I know the proper way and will not let my Dad touch that again! I still have no clue how to clean my chain though... but I will go on the trainer this week-end, clean chain or not!

A while ago, I had a post where I was talking about my running 10 years ago. I mention that I participated in a few races when I was 13 and 14 years old.

I finally found the picture of the 5K I did in 1994 at the Quebec cross country on Ile Ste-Helene. And yes, you see right, I was wearing a cotton pink floyd t-shirt with thick cotton shorts to run this event LOL Now that is running in s-t-y-l-e .... let's just say coolmax wasn't common then!

I'm going to be pretty busy this week-end. My good friends from Halifax are coming to Montreal fot a 15h layover tomorrow (well today!) and we're going to hang out until I drive them to the airport at 4AM on Sunday.

Then on Sunday night, I am preparing my Dad a surprise birthday dinner! Lots, lots of yummy food to make!

Have a good week-end everybody =)

SICK SICK SICK.........

Urgh... my niece was sick over the week-end (stomach bug). We came back yesterday from Ste-Luce and I didn't feel super great in the evening. Turns out I was sick all night and I'm the only one of the family who caught the bug... yeah my immune system sucks!!

My Dad will bring my tire to the local bike shop this afternoon but I do not think I am going to do anything today. Just 'living' is hard.....

TRAINER SET-UP ADVENTURES......

We suck at this!!!!!!!!!

We are not able to remove my chain to clean it, even though I know where the master thingy is.

My Dad replaced the tire with an old one but we can't inflate the tube because he pierced it.


GGGGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Nothing is working, this bike thing is so freakin' complicated!

Running = pair of shoes, good bra and go!!!

My bad mood was set after a horrendous interview process, the bike issues did not help. I'm off to Ste-Luce-Sur-Mer at my brother's. I'm sure seeing my niece will cheer me up.

Have a good week-end everyone!

INTENSITY...

I miss the intensity that running has. I miss running as fast as you can and stopping out of breath. I miss coming back from a long run in the cold with ice on my hat. I miss training for marathons. I miss the runner's high.

I've been doing a lot of cross training but it does nothing for me. I am becoming faster in the pool but still don't feel like it is a big deal. I bought a new kick ass bike and I am often thinking about accidents and deaths while riding it... LOL Fast bike = crashes in my head.

I've been doing my best to be PATIENT, and be CONTENT that I don't have cancer or another illness. But somedays it is just not making me feel any better.

I've got a plan... not sure it will work but I am going to do it anyway. Santa came early this year and I just received the Christmas gift from my folks.

The plan is to find a marathon training plan that has runs in minutes. And to follow this plan but on the bike. I am hoping that an increase in training volume will help me fight the runner's blues and lose some weight ( which I desperately need to!) What do you think? Good idea? Bad idea?

PS. send some good vibes my way tomorrow afternoon, I have an interview for a chemist position at the City of Montreal!

ETA: Strength training is kicking my ass. I took Laurel's advice to just stick with it... I did it Sunday and yesterday and I AM SORE. I'd love to get ideas of what others do, so I can alternate exercices. This is what I did:

3 sets of 20 reps 1 min in between sets

1. Squats
2. Standing bent-arm lat with elastic band
3. Step-up
4. Calf raises
5. Push-ups
6. Seated Row
7. Squats with elastic band
8. Abdominal with twist
9. Bicep curl with elastic band
10. Outer thigh exercise with elastic band
11. Inner thigh exercise with elastic band
    

GREY CUP IN MONTREAL!

And I predict my favorite team will win too!! ;-) If you're not Canadian than you have no idea what I am talking about! The CFL is the same as the NFL but A LOT smaller. The Grey Cup is our Super Bowl.

GO! ALS! GO!

The =( and the =)


=(

No running for another 2 months...... ='(

well I can try 10-15 mins once a week near the end of the 2 months to see how i feel... f'ing hell!!!

It can take 6-9 months to get a bone scan appointment and since I don't have insurance I can't go to a private clinic as it would cost 600$+ ...

STUPID FOOT!


=)

The doctor thinks it is healing properly and just needs time.

She doesn't think the bone scan will reveal anything.

So yeah good and bad but I still can't run.

So, I am going to invest in a bike trainer sooner than later. My little stationnary bike is a pain in the ass, I cannot control much of the resistance on it anymore. It starts to makes a screeching noise after 1h even without putting resistance. Sucks ass!

Oh well, keep on trucking eh?

Have a good week-end!

PS. May the wind be at your back tomorrow Laurel! I will be rooting for you at the Philly marathon (and hopefully track you too!)

ANOTHER ONE WITH THE PHOTO TAGGING GAME....

What can I say, I'm a follower.... =)

The game is to go to the fourth folder on your computer and pick the fourth picture. Here's mine:

The folder it is coming from has 12 pictures with each month's name as the title for a Christmas gift I am preparing for my Dad.... so hopefully he's not reading this post and has no clue I am giving him a personalised calendar for Christmas LOL

This picture is for February with my brother Yannik and his GF holding some of my favorites stuffed animals (the weird looking duckies... which I have a small collection BTW...). Anyway, this picture was taken at Easter 2005 when my family came to Windsor for a quick visit. It was pretty crowded in my small 1BR apartment but we had a lot of fun. And we like to take silly pics like that =)

I hope that the people who haven't played yet will!

Have a good week-end everybody!

p-s I went to the pool and the cute Guy was there again, pushed me to my best time for 1.25K swim in 27 mins!! =) Thanks cute Guy!

LIFE WITHOUT RUNNING....

I'm repeating myself but I MISS RUNNING!!!!!! A WHOLE F'ING LOT!!!!

So, it has been a month since I got my 2nd cortisone injection. The radiologist told me that I could start running after a month of down time but my foot does not feel fine =( At all..... and instead of pushing through the pain (like I used to do...) I will wait to run and go see the doctor at the clinic AGAIN.

I will do it tomorrow as I had to wait for my fellowship documents to be sent. The radiologist who did my cortisone injection has supposedly sent a reference to "my doctor" (no really my Dr. but the emergency on staff person) saying I need a bone scan. I also want to be directed to a orthopedist or some other specialist of the foot (but not a podiatrist) since they are not considered regular doctors in our health systems. Anyway, not running sucks and I hate it.

I've been doing REAL good with my cross training sticking to the schedule but I just find million of reasons not to do the strenght training. Not sure why I dislike it that much... but it is painfully hard to get motivated on Sundays.... so I missed last 2 Sundays LOL

Date Duration Distance Type Where
Nov-18 00:24:00 1.00 Swim Piscine Roussin Swim
Nov-17 00:27:34 10.00 Bike Stationary Bike
Nov-14 01:07:01 25.26 Bike Long ride to Parc Pointe-aux-
Nov-13 00:30:00 1.15 Swim Piscine Roussin Swim
Nov-12 00:28:18 10.25 Bike Last ride with Bijou outside... =(
Nov-11 00:24:00 1.00 Swim Piscine Roussin Swim
Nov-8 00:23:36 10.00 Bike Stationary Bike

Oh well, I'm happy to get exercice on regular basis anyway. I also didn't train today but I think I am coming down with something so this is my reason ;-)

Have a good week everyone!!

CALL ME FELLOW!!!

Forget that job interview... it wasn'T a job that interested me..... BUT BUT

I GOT A FELLOWSHIP AT ENVIRONMENT CANADA!!!!!!!!!!!

I are moving to Ottawa in 2009!!!

The start date will be February or April.

I'm super excited!!!!!!!!!!!!

FYI Fellowship = a job that is paid a lot less than a real job ;-) But it is my first step in the government and I will take it!!

I swear I will do a training report soon, I've been a good girl... following my schedule ;-)

WISH ME LUCK!

I have a JOB INTERVIEW TOMORROW MORNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And I've also got some interest from 2 other parties... things are moving in the right direction for me... finally =)

Hopefully, it goes as well as for this woman.... LOL

Rule 1: no cleavage showing...

I'M LOVING THE INDIAN SUMMER!!!

This is my new training plan (since running is out of the schedule still):
Mon/Wed/Fri = Bike days (between 30 mins and 1h)
Tues/Thur = Swim days
Sunday = Strength training

It's been totally gorgeous here for the past 3 days! I had to take advantage of it, so I took Bijou out of her hibernation for a ride today, 31 miles in 2h23. A little slower than last August (2h18) but the wind was a killer coming back. I was planning to do 1h but the weather was so awesome that I kept going for just 1 more mile LOL

Yesterday, I went to the pool and did 2K in 47 mins. My fastest time so far... that cute guy I was chasing definitely motivated me ;-) On Sunday, I did some strenght training... which was the first time in about 6 months LOL I'm on my way to recovery folks! I just need to be patient and not miss running too much (which I do... so much...)

On another note, my Dad and I were watching the US election night yesterday and we were so happy that Obama won so easily (I thought it would be much closer!). I cried a little, I am not black or anything but it gives me hope for the future. That racism will be over someday, maybe I am naive... but anyone can dream.... right?

Have a good running week everybody! Run for me!

HALLOWEEN!

Rocky was a total hit with the kids yesterday! Most of the little kids were more interested in him than candy LOL And we were giving good stuff not crappy halloween candy! ;-) I decided at the last minute to dress as a witch, no big make-up or nothing but Rocky and I were matching.

We had decorated and I brought the laptop outside to have some 'hauted house' type music. We had like 100 mini chocolate bars and 60 rocktets necklase. WE WERE READY. Well my Dad, Rocky and I were outside from 6-8 PM and we only had 20 kids come to our house =( IT WAS A LONG AND BORING WAIT! And I obviously ate way too much candy while waiting for the kids...

As far as training I am back full force, except for the running part. Here's last week in review:

Tuesday -Swim: 1K in 25 mins

Thursday -Swim: 1.1.5K in 36 mins

Saturday -Bike: 20K in 46 mins

NON RUNNING CHRONICLE....

Ok, so only 20 days until I can run again. Every time I see my Dad leaving for a run, my heart ache... ;-) But I am so proud of him that I forget about my own pain =) I totally slacked off on the bike and the swim so tomorrow I am going back to the pool!

Foot is going relatively well... no more throbbing pain and I can walk barefoot again without agonising pain... seems like things are going well but it doesn't feel 'normal' like the other foot. So, I am cautiously optimistic as I don't want to be disappointed all over again, like las time.

Saturday was my birthday and I'm starting to freak out about being almost 30 (28 to be exact). I know this is silliness and totally irrational!! But I feel like an old fart! My Dad was my age when he had me... and I am the baby of the family. I am far away from having a family of my own (if ever) guess I gotta find myself a MAN first LOL In the meantime Rocky is my Baby!! LOL

I found him a super cute costume for Halloween, he's totally hating every minute of it but it makes me laugh. And I'm sure the kids will like it when we give candies out on Friday.

It was great to be back in Windsor, it is only when you have left that you realise how much you miss the people there. My ex-boss is just the best, we worked really well on our last article when I was there. So it will be submitted to a very good journal soon! =)

Now, this is the part I was dreading writing about because I am still very disappointed about the outcome of this. In my last post, I wrote about a job possibility at Environment Canada in Burlington and having a professor I know trying to put a good word for me. Well, he did but he was told that the interviews had already been conducted.... so yeah I wasn't short listed. I am more than disappointed, I just don't know when this will happen for me. =( And I thought knowing the person would have gotten me an interview at least... ='( The professor told me I was sooooooooooo close to getting the interview.... so yeah it sucks ass. Still trying to digest this rejection. I know that in the order of things, it wasn't meant to be but I am still totally bummed out about it.

BACK IN THE HOOD!!

I am back in Windsor for a week and it feels like I have never left. Everything is still the same, my old 'Boss', the people at the Institute where I worked, the waterfront and the city in general. I really missed my old Boss! I was so happy to see him and work on this last thing with him. He's one of my favorite people in the world =)

One good news, is that there is another professor at my Institute that likes me a lot. I was looking at one of his old scientific articles and told him I'd like to read it. I said: "you co-wrote this article with Mister So-and-so, do you know him well?". Well, it turns out this is the guy I've been in contact with for the job at Environment Canada in Burlington that I REALLY WANT. He told me that Mister So-and-so is his old Ph.D. advisor! He talks to him OFTEN and will give him a call to tell him how awesome-greatest-researcher I am!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAHOO! How freakin great is this!!??!! I was so happy, my career goal is to be a big researcher in the government and this is my chance! I really hope it gets me an interview at least =) What a great trip so far!!

My best friend, Flashy, is running her first half-marathon tomorrow. I am so disappointed I can't run it with her =( I really wanted to be there for her but I am being reasonable with my foot now and going to let it rest for a full month. I didn't even bring my running gear so I wouldn't be temted to do it! I am pretty excited about cheering her and brought my cowbell, I'll be making some noise!

We went to pick-up our race kits for the Detroit half tomorrow. Altough I am not running, I did actually pay for race registration and I got my shirt. Not sure I will actually end up wearing it since I will not have run the race...

I got a great shirt for myself and something for my 2 year old niece. How cute is that?

Have a good week-end everybody!

INJURY UPDATE & GROSSEST PICTURE

I had my 2nd cortisone injection yesterday. The radiologist ended up teaching me that heel spur and platar fasciitis are the same issue. I thought they were different. So, he could only inject the cortisone at the same place where they had done it last time.... The pain I have is near the edge of the heel so I was kinda depressed when he told me he couldn't inject there...

He basically told me, there was 2 injection spots on the foot and he could only reproduce what happened last time. And he was not very confident it was going to solve my problem and I should do a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) instead... I ended up :'( very frustrated by the doctor who told me I ONLY had PF and not heel spur... It's hard to know who to believe... And I was not sure if I should proceed with the injection or just wait for another test...

After a brief talk to my Dad, I decided to go for it and hope for the best but still asked to be referred in NMR... 1 month with NO running... ouch and then BASE BUILDING just like BeachRunner for awhile... That also means no stupid stunt (Detroit half and Miami marathon are way too close).

Ok, so last week was Marcy's first marathon and I sent her this e-card. I was really hoping she wouldn't go there. ;-)

Looks like someone else did!!! LMAO This is so GROSS!! So, would you have ended the race or hide in the bushes?????

I'M FEELING THE LOVE (aka I'VE BEEN TAGGED)

Two wonderful chickas: Leana and Michelle have given me an "I Heart Your Blog" award! Thanks Girls!

This honor also comes with another responsibility: to post another six random facts about myself and "tag" another six bloggers with some blogging love. I've done this a couple times now.... not sure what new I can share but I'll try.

1- I'm a couch potato wannabe athlete. As soon as I am injured or when one big race has passed by, I am totally happy to be just watching tv and not training at all. It takes a lot to get out of this 'inertia' mode LOL

2- I am totally obssessed with Runninmania.com, it's a running forum I joined on February 15th 2007 just after I broken up with the last boyfriend and it has been my daily drug since then!

3- I L-O-V-E to dress my dog... any circumstances, all sorts of outfits... here's a few. People think I am totally insane but he is like my Baby... and he TOTALLY hates it!! LMAO

4- I am a francophone and I am really sensitive to mistake I made in English. I am fluent in English (obviously I did my Ph.D. thesis in English!) but I never pronunce the 'h' in words that start with h (house, home, hyper etc.) But if you correct my English you go to my black list and I'm going to kick your ass LOL

5- My brother has been my best friend since I was 12 and he was 16 year old.

6- I'm a serious scientific but I love to kid around in the lab once in awhile... here's the 'smoking walleye' and the 'drunk at the beamline' pics...

Here's some people who I think haven't been tagged yet and might want to play along:

Brian

Cindy

Lumpfish

Ann

Jonathan

Ken

ETA: I forgot to tell you guys that I am getting a 2nd cortisone injection tomorrow at the RIGHT place this time... sigh it is going to be painful...

That's it for me! HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL THE CANADIANS!! =)

STUPID TECHNO...

I knew I would struggle to update my blog layout. I should have kept the old boring one!!!

I cannot find where blogger said it 'copied' my old template....

So I can't access all the modification I had made previously on the right side.... and that would means typing all my race results and finding the e-mail addresses etc. The same for the people I follow... GRR this sucks

ETA: Figured it out.... Only took me 15-20 mins LOL

TECHNO?

Me not so much.... It took me awhile to switch to the new blogger version and now there are these "Follower" thing.... what the heck is that?

If you follow me and I follow you, who are we following? Who will be our Guru?!

Anyway, I've been pretty busy in the last few days on a low intensity training schedule anyway... nothing very exciting except my Dad's fastest mile ever today 11:55 min/mile during fartlek =)

Wed: 20K bike @ 51 mins
Thur: 1K swim @ 25 mins
Fri: 5K with Dad @ 41 mins
Sat: 25K bike @ 67 mins
Sun: REST
Mon: 3.5K Fartlek with Dad & Rocky (Dad's first time!)

I've also turned into Rachel Rae... or the equivalent of a cooking machine!
I made a few delicious recipes:
Pasta with lobster, wild mushrooms and cream
Butternut squash soup and with roasted red pepper puree
Spicy dill pickes

And some of the weirdest taste ever too... can't always win!!
Carribean pumpkin and black bean soup
Spiced Pumpkin soup

So yeah that's about what's going im my non exciting life!

RUM RUNNERS RELAY REPORT

Nova Scotia has to be the best place on earth!! I love it there and the relays they organise are just the most awesome way to spend a Saturday =)

Hurricane Kyle was kind enough to wait until Sunday with his strong wind and rain so we had an almost rain free day on Saturday. My leg was at 8:55 AM and about 11.4K long.

My foot had been bothering me lately so the goal was nice and slow but the pressure of coming in last really motivated me! I started running and soon found 'my shadow' this woman was following me so close that I could feel her breathe in my neck!! In this first picture you can not even see her behind me!!

I thought she was going to pass me at the beginning since she was so close but she didn't. As the racewent by, I started to distance myself from her. My main goal was to not let her pass me at anytime!!

Then at the half point, I gave her a little wave and said goodbye for good! At that point I was about 200-300 m in front of her and would keep this lead until the end.

A big thanks to my favorite Haligonian, Lisa, for running part of the last half of the leg with me. She kept talking to me to keep my mind off the pain of all the rolling hills and a blister that had started on my right foot. In the end, she mut have run close to 3K with me and I really needed it, she got me through a big hill right and we just kept on trucking. My foot was killing me at that point.

My leg ended with a slow incline to the finish line and I kept repeating to myself: "Are you f'ing kidding me?! I was pissed LOL But I finished and didn't let that woman pass me =)

This was a very hilly race for me! I never run hills as it is totally flat around Montreal. The green line is elevation and the scale goes from 100-500 ft! I usually have profile with a 30-50 ft. scale LOL

Finished the 11.4 K in 1:16:39 (10:49 min/mile) according to my garmin but the official time is actually 4 mins faster than my finish time (1:12:47) since I didn't make the mat and got a 5 mins penalty on the last person who made the mat's time...

Overall, I'm very happy with this race and I had a great time cheering my team 'Runningmania.com' during the day. Here's a group pic with 2/3 of the team!

Other NRR good news, I got a post-doc offer while I was in Halifax at Université de Montréal. I also applied to a research position at Environment Canada and I actually know the person who is hiring and he told me I had great chance to get an intervieew! YAY! So things are starting to move for me. Send some positive vibes please!

Ok... google reader tell me there are 67 new posts? You guys wrote a whole lot while I was gone! Will try to catch up tonight and tomorrow! =)

BUSY MONDAY

Giving a week rest to my foot seems to have done some good. I was able to run 1h with my Dad this morning. It was his first time going farther than 5K!! I told him we could just do one 10 mins interval more than he usual does and we ended up with 1h!! He was pretty happy I pushed him to go further and we ended up doing 7.12K.

My hair had barely time to dry from the morning shower when I met my friend, Marika, and we went to the Olympic pool to swim. We did 2K!!! She's the one who helped me with my technique a few weeks ago. Going with her really pushed me to go faster and I finished the 2K in 50 mins! She did pass me 4 times... but with her background as a swimmer I'm just happy she didn't pass me more often lol

I'm limping a little right now but not as bad as last Monday after my double racing week-end!

Have a good running week everybody

PAY BACK IS A BIT*CH

I went shopping with my Dad today, found him a pair of fall running pants and a long sleeve tech shirt =) We walked for a few hours and now I'm getting some sharp pain in my foot every 20-30 secs. It is intense and driving me totally crazy. I tried heat.. didn'T work. Tried ice didn't work either... sigh... I will run Rum Runners but I SWEAR ON MY BLOG that is my last 'stupid stunt'... for awhile which means no Detroit half unfortunately =(

WAKE-UP CALL

About how bad is the medical system in Quebec (I don't want to generalize by saying Canada but I think so too)

I went to the clinic this morning to get my foot checked. It is still constantly hurting, and I had to start taking ibuprofene everyday now. I knew the double header this week-end was not my most fantastic idea but it was what I wanted to do. And with lots of ibuprofene I enjoyed both races.

Right now, I AM SO ANGRY. They screwed up my case at the clinic and *forgot* to follow up some results from my radiography in April!!!

THEY KNOW SINCE APRIL THAT I HAVE A HEEL SPUR.

WTF YOU PEOPLE!!

DO YOUR JOB!

I AM SO FREAKIN MAD.

All summer, I did the best I could to deal with this "unknown" pain in my foot and they knew since way back what I had.... The podiatrist thought it was neuromas so I researched neuromas... seemed to make sense went on board with it. But I knew he wasn't a doctor and wanted to get this checkd before I have a 2nd cortisone injection (apointment made for October 14th).

Having a hard time dealing with this right now.

I AM MAD MAD MAD MAD MAD!!!!!!!!!!!!

5K OASIS RACE REPORT


From my Dad:
Thank you everybody for all your kind supporting words, Sonia showed me the post she wrote about my first race. It was a wonderful experience, the rain did not bother me at all, actually, it helped keep the humidity down as it was very humid today.

The finish line in the Olympic stadium was an extraordinary experience. It gave me an adrenaline shot and I was able to finish the race with a sprint! My next race is in Miami on January 24th and it will allow me to continue training throughout the fall. In the end, I want to say a big thanks to my personal trainer who supported me during my training.

From Me: It was a great experience to pace my Dad for his first race. I was so PROUD of my protégé and how well he did. According to my garmin we came in at 38:27 and he was really happy to be done in less than 40 mins which was his goal. But there was not mat at the starting line so we only have a gun time (no chip time!) and we were near the back of the pack =(

So, his official time is 40:11... I was a little disappointed but the most important thing is that he's done it, feels great about it and he's really happy with his medal!! LOL

(Oh and one woman was hyperventilating near 1.5K and I asked her if she was ok and wanted help. She looked at me really rudely and gave me the finger!!! I couldn't freakin believe it, neither did the people around me.... seriously?!)

Here's some pictures from the race:

Before the race, I surprised him with the signs!!

My Dad smiling at the starting line. He didn't keep that rain coat very long, way too hot!

Us ready to race in the rain!

At the finish line with our medals =)

TRIATHLON DE MONTRÉAL -RACE REPORT

I had a lot of fun today... Isn't what matters in the end? I think so too! =)

Swim 750m
It was my first open water swim ever and we were doing it in the Olympic bassin the site of the Olympic rowing events during the 1976 Olympic Games. It was very cold and pretty much everybody was wearing a wetsuit... I have yet to purchase one since it is so expensive and was wearing my speedo! It was very cold at first and I was panicking a little bit with everyone swimming on me. It took me a while to feel comfortable in the water. I swam about 3 mins slower than at my last tri.

Swim time = 18:07, pace = 2:25/100m


Bike 20K
We were doing 4 loops of the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve the site of Montreal's Formula 1 Grand Prix. I was very very careful with my laps count and was dedicated to NOT mess it up this time.

So, I did my first lap and saw my Dad at the end of the lap. I yelled at him but he never looked at me... I looked at the time 10 mins! I'm like WOW! I'm fast, this is good =)

At the end of the 2nd lap, I see my Dad again and decided to wave like crazy on the bike.... everybody else around him saw me except him.... good god he's a bad supporter lol

At the end of the 3rd lap, I was doing all I could so that he could see me which involved yelling and waving and he FINALLY SAW ME!! YAY! Even captured this following picture (I'm in orange):

At the end of 4 laps I was around 39 mins, I was smoking fast and very happy about it!!

Bike time = 44:24, pace = 27.0 Km/h

Run 5K
The run was great, I was not feeling as exhausted as I felt in my last tri. It was hot but I was determined to not slow down. I also finished 3 mins faster than a month ago! =) I am pretty happy about this segment because I was finally feeling strong on a run in a triathlon, mini victory for me here.

Run = 33:18, pace = 6:40 min/Km

Total time was 1:35:47

Which is only 3 mins slower than my last sprint tri where I messed up one of the loops on the bike!

Thanks to my Dad for coming with me and being there to cheer... when he could see me LOL

AS READY AS ONE CAN BE!!

Monday, one of my friend who was a swim coach for many years gave me a private class! She had great little tips to improve my form and my breathing. I already feel like my style is a lot smoother. She that said for someone who never took swim classes and pretty much imitated other's people swim my technique was awesome which made me very happy.

Crotchy is back to normal. Alleluia!! So I was able to do 10K on the bike in about 30 mins today (taking things slowly to get back at it lol). Thanks for your support and for laughing at me... no biggies I love to entertain you guys!!

Tomorrow morning will be the last run with my Dad before the Big week-end races. I was thinking of getting my Dad some sort of special present for the race but I don't know exactly what to get him...

Today, while he was away shopping, I prepared signs for the Big Race. My Mom and my Aunt are coming to cheer us so I wanted us to be able to see them from far away. I'm definitely as excited as he is for his racing debut =)

Here are the signs (I do hope my Dad will not look at my blog before the race as this is a surprise right now!!). Obviously they are all in French since we are French lol

This one says: Roger 'Don't fucking stop'

Roger 'don't let Sonia win!'

Hurry up Roger, the beer will be warm!
P.S. Do not look up foot injuries or foot surgeries on google image as you get some pretty nasty stuff you might not ever want to see.... I spared you guys on this.... believe me!!!!

CROTCHY PAIN...

After reading about all of Marcy's crotchy related problem, I never thought I would be the next target... YES, the bike is evil for me. After Monday's 50K ride, things were sensitive but nothing too too bad.... Then Tuesday was a 2 mile run, Wednesday was a brick workout 30/20 total 12K ride and 2 mile run. But it's really Thursday that killed me.... Our community pool has been close since the end of August and I've found no replacement close by. And with 1 week to go before my final tri of the season I felt like I needed a pool workout.

I thought: "hey I have to be downtown tomorrow for an event, so I'll just take Granny out of the garbage bin, stopped at the pool and made it to the exhibit, plus bike back home". Total 35K ride. Not bad, or so I thought.

Right.... Freakin. Bad. Idea. The streets in Montreal are like Beyrouth. I swear to god, it was THAT bad. So, my brilliant training idea became a nightmare. I made it to the pool in one piece but crotchy already started to hurt. The saddle on Granny is killing my private parts...

So, got to the pool, swam 1500 m. Practiced bi-lateral breathing. Felt pretty happy about myself and almost forgot I had to go back on Granny. Sigh. The ride home was the most painful thing ever. I HATE GRANNY!!

2 days later and I'm still suffering the repercussions of this bike ride. Plus, I'm sick with a stomach bug. Great. Hopefully crotch pain will be gone for my double header next week....

So.... Marcy do you put a cream down there or smth?! LOL

JOIN ME ON MY BIKE RIDE!!

So, I've been a real couch potato these last few days... and I was feeling very fat and blah... so this morning I decided to stop this madness, I've thrown all the chips in the garbage (for real this is my addiction...) and off I went on Bijou.

I passed a bridge, Pont Charles de Gaulle, at the beginning of my route. Separating Montreal from the suburbs!

I decided to go as far as I felt like as long as the ride was at a minimum of 1h30. I stopped at a red light and asked a guy where the cycling path called "La Route Verte" was going and he was like: "as far as you want!". So, I just kept going on it and finally saw the sign below after 14K so I knew I going to target L'Assomption as my final destination (I still had to come back!!).

It started getting really nice to ride after 20K where we stopped being in residential area where you can't ride that fast and there are a lot of turns (they scare me... so I slow down a lot!). After that I saw mostly corn fields and nice waterfront houses.

Finally got to L'Assomption and my watch read 25.02K at that sign!

And look below at the sign I found in Le Gardeur! Apparently dogs cannot poop in the suburbs!!! LOL

Total ride distance = 50.24K

Total ride time = 2h18

Speed = 21.8 Km/h

Pretty happy I finally found the motivation to get out there. I feel great right now!! =)

NOT SURE WHAT THE HECK I AM DOING...

This getting out the door to exercice is hard... Since Quebec City half-marathon I am in a coma like state.... I felt really crappy Thursday and Friday, some sort of start of cold and now that it has seem to pass. I just can't motivate myself to go out the door. For the last 3 days I got dressed for a bike ride just to sit on the couch all day... sigh. We'll see what happens today.... but I am not hopeful. Not even the thought of sucking at my next sprint tri is kicking me in the butt.

I don't think I speak of my personal life very often on this blog, as I like to be this always happy person that I know I can be. But for the last week I can't shake this unhapiness. I have now been looking for a job since January and finished my Ph.D. since April and haven't found anything. Niet. Nil. Nothing. The worse is that I have only been called on 1 interview and just receive a negative reply on Wednesday. It is starting to affect the way I see myself, and all the sacrifices I made to finish this damn Ph.D. and then realise I have nothing in front of me??? This is not fair. I just can't understand why this is so hard....

Plus my foot/ankle is totally wack!

SMART... ME? YEAH NOT SO MUCH....

So, I went to Quebec City conviced I would ran the 10K with Lisa but we finally went for the half-marathon.... decision made after having too many beers! Maybe not my smartest decision but time will tell... the good news: I survived. I ran with a good friend and thank god she was there or I would have given up as I was in a lot of pain starting at mile 10. Let's just say those easy 5Ks with my Dad are NOT the best training for a half... and I knew that. We just decided to be silly and do it for fun and fun we had as you can see in our 'costumes'....


We got lots of cheering because of what we were wearing and the fact that Quebec City is celebrating is 400th year. It was a great boost of energy. It was a PWed for both of us but it was HOT (ask Leana....) and we were there to have fun. =) Couldn't have asked for a better racing partner! So glad I did it and my foot is not so bad today.

I spent an afternoon with Leana and her Mom and it was very nice to meet her, she's a lot taller than I expected ;-) Sorry, you didn't have the race you were hoping for but the weather is so unpredictable... Monday would have been a GREAT day for a race!!!

MY DAD'S FIRST RACE!!!!

All of you know that since I moved back home, I started a 5K program for my Dad and Aunt. Early in the training my Aunt started to have leg problems and had to quit but my Dad was committed and he was/is doing SO WELL.

We run together about 2 times a week and he goes once by himself and can now do 5K consistently. He averages 42-43 mins and is improving his time almost everytime he goes out. =) I'm definitely very proud of him for keeping at it. So to celebrate his achievement we're going to run the Oasis 5K at the Montreal Marathon on Sunday September 14.

He's pretty excited and already decided we have to wear the same colours shirt to match. My Mom and Aunt are going to come and cheer him on too! And what he wanted the most what to get a medal!

I just wanted to tell everyone how proud I am of my DAD =)

P-S I'm off to Quebec city tomorrow, finally decided to be reasonable and run the 10K... Well, my foot hurts a lot these days so the decision was rather easy. I will be racing this with a good friend of mine coming down from Halifax and we will be wearing 'costumes'.... I'll post pics when I come back!

WHAT DOES YOUR MEDALS MEAN TO YOU?

A while ago She who makes Waves ask us about the meaning of medals. And I promised I would do a post about it so here it goes!

Since I moved out of my apartment and back in my parent's house my medals have had more glorious days....

They spend their time in a little box at the bottom of my closet without getting any exposure. While I was in Windsor they had a prime spot right in the living room. And anybody who visited my house could see all the nice medals along with a poster from a race that said: "I'll keep on running"...

I started my racing career on May 13th 2006 with the 5K Path to a better heart, finished in 33:53 and got hooked on racing!! I continued racing 5Ks and 10Ks throughout the summer and fall with races from the Running Factory (a local running shop there) and they never gave medals, which always disappointed me. I remember finishing my first half and not getting a medal bummed me out...

So when I finished my first marathon and they put the medal around my neck this was the culmination of a lot of efforts and it stays my favorite medal so far and the only one I got engraved with my name and time. My 2nd marathon finishers medal look really small compared to that!

Except my first half, Get to the Point, I have received medals for the 5 others and I cherish them all: the good races (Detroit, Miami, and Run for Retina) the hard but rewarding (Chilly PB!) and the bad (Trot to the beach) ones.

I have other medals from races I thoroughly enjoyed running, Around The Bay is the best road race EVER!! The Nissan 10 miler where I met Jelly, Kenny and Francis last year. And my 10K PB, still, at the Run for Canada 2007 race.