If this Sister can do it - then these sisters can do it!

Going to listen to Sister Madonna Buder last night was exactly what I needed.  On Saturday I went for a ride and I must say - it was one of the worst rides I've had in a long time-my riding partner bailed, it was cold, I was tired, and it was WINDY.  While I was riding I started crying and blaming Hallie for my miserable ride- because lets be honest - I wouldn't be doing this Ironman if it wasn't for her.   
But, my attitude has completely changed after last night.  Last night my sister and I went to listen to Sister Madonna Buder speak at St. Mary's.  Talk about an inspiration - Sister has competed in over 320 triathlons 40 of which were ironman races.  Her story was unlike any other- considering she didn't even start running until she was in her 50's.  She reminded me a lot of Hallie - (Hallie-I'm not just saying that because I refer to you as Sister Mary Hallie.)  Sister Madonna Buder said she needed a reason to run - a goal - which if any of you don't know Hallie - that's exactly what she needs.  Hallie is the type of person that once she sets her goal their is no stopping her.  She also has to keep find more and more demanding/challanging goals.  (She tells me after this ironman she will be done trying to exceed her previous goals)  Sister has also gone into races with very little if any training leading up to the event - which Hallie has been known to do on occassions. :-)

But Sister's message was very simple - with God there is nothing we can't do.  That is basically how she has managed to finish the last couple of races - calling on God to get her to the finish.  I have always said that God will never give us more than we can handle - so I know the next nine months are going to physically, emotionally, and spiritually challanging, but God will never give us more than we can handle.  With God by our side - there is nothing we can't do. 

I'm extremely excited because I will be eating dinner with Sister Madonna Buder following our run around the loop this evening.  I can't wait to learn more about her training for her ironman races and gaining as much knowledge and insight from her as possible. 

Thanks Cliff

Since Hallie's team had their first swim meet (Evansville Relay's) on Saturday, she was unable to train with me on Saturday - and since this was the first Saturday I have been in town and it wasn't supposed to rain - I knew I was going to go riding no matter what.   My wonderful cousin Cliff volunteered to ride with me! :-)   I was responsible for calling to wake him up, then we had plans to meet at Ray Becker and Old Henderson.  Thankfully Cliff did answer his phone when I called and agreed to still ride with me even though he was out late Friday night.  We didn't have a set route or distance we were shooting for, we were just going to ride until we were tired.  When we started riding Cliff made the comment, "Wow it's a perfect day to ride - It's not windy at ALL!"  Of course he would say that, not 10 minutes later the wind picked up.  hahah It wasn't terribly windy - but I hate riding against the wind.  I felt good while we were riding and chatting - but Cliff just couldn't keep up (hahah jk Cliff)  He did ask if we could stop and take a break - which I thought he was kidding but he wasn't!  I told him we would head towards USI and he could take Hogue home and I would keep going to get some more miles in.  He found out the hard way that he should ride without having something for breakfast - he had to stop two more times because he was just exhausted.  But he's a trooper for going as long as he did.  I added on another 15 miles or so which I probably would have gone longer but I wanted to make sure I had plenty of time to eat and get ready for the MD game.  I did make myself run for twenty minutes when I got home - which it's been awhile since I've biked and ran.  That is definitely something my legs are going to have to get used to.  All-in-all it was good ride and good run.   Thanks Cliff for being my training partner. 
Until next time. Jenna

Iron Nun (A Must See Event)

I came across this and thought I should share it with all who are interested in something truly amazing!

Please join us for a special presentation by

Sister Madonna Buder

"The Iron Nun"

Sunday, November 20

7:00 pm

St. Mary’s Amphitheater

Take the elevator near the hospital’s

main entrance to the lower level.

3700 Washington Avenue

Evansville, Indiana

Free and open to the public

The presentation will focus on

the body, mind and spirit connection.

It will be followed by a book signing of

Sister Buder’s book,

The Grace to Race.

For more information, call

812.485.7425

Sister Madonna BuderNow in her 80s, Sister Buder has completed more than 350 triathlons, including 45 Ironman distances. She began training at age 48 and completed her first Ironman event at the age of 55. In 2005 at the age of 75, she became the oldest woman ever to complete the Ironman race — a record she has beaten more than once. In fact, the Ironman organization has had to add new age brackets as Sister Buder gets older.
Hers is the self-proclaimed story of "a woman who broke with convention, followed her heart, and found her higher mission."

Part 1 of our mental preparation!

Our physical training will not begin until the beginning of the year – but we have already begun mentally preparing for our ironman race.

Since we have season tickets to the colts – we spend a lot of time traveling from Evansville to Indy and back – so what better way to spend our travel time than mentally preparing.

Hallie found a book by Friel and Byrn, “Going Long: Training for Iron-Distance Triathlons,” which we have decided to use as part of our mental preparation.  We want to make sure we are up to speed on what we can expect as we prepare for the ironman. 

Instead of telling you what we are doing in the gym or on the road- we are going to spend some time telling you about what we have read-feel free to add advice/suggestions/comment.

Part I Getting Started

Chapter 1 The iron journey

The most important piece of information in this chapter is definitely the power of believing in you.  We are working to set ourselves up for success by constantly reinforcing the fact that we not only CAN do this – we WILL do this.  We are both willing to make the time commitment – the time commitment to training – the time commitment for proper nutrition – the time commitment to get plenty of rest.

Some of the traits for success include being confident, staying focused, being self-sufficient, being able to adapt, stay in control of your emotions, use mental clarity, and being psyched.  

Chapter 2 Approaches to Training

We are going to focus our training on endurance endurance endurance!!!!

Our motto is:  Swim Smart, Bike Strong, Run Tough

Chapter 3 Understanding Fitness & Chapter 4 Equipment

I’m not going to lie – were pretty dry.  Basically the book says – when it comes to fitness we want to make sure we are devoting to proper amount of time to biking, swimming, and run as well as cross training.  We also have to make sure we are getting plenty of rest and proper nutrition in order to achieve proper fitness.  As far as equipment – the most important piece of equipment is a properly fit bike and good running shoes!

Part II Ironman Training

More information to come!!!