HammerTime
| June 21, 2012 | Posted by Emily under Uncategorized |
I am more than a full 24 hours in to my 48 hour running hiatus, and I already feel like it was the best decision ever.
I also feel like it was the best decision ever to leave my running shoes and garmin at my desk last night, so this morning when I got the urge to lace up, I was shoe-blocked.
Instead of running, I headed to the gym and spent a sunshine filled morning sweating it out on the elliptical and lifting heavy objects, I believe some people call them weights, I don’t know, it’s been a while. ‘
Between the early morning run urges and the dreadful time on the elliptical, I can already tell that 48 hours is going to be more than enough time for me to spend away from running. I also know that taking a break was the right thing. My body is breathing a big sigh of relief for the gift of a couple impactless days so it can regroup, recharge and get ready to rock again.
You know what else is good for a break from running?
Sushi.
Preferably in the quantity of one roll for every mile you are skipping for the day. When you’re in the middle of a high mileage week like I was, this makes for a positively delightful evening of carbs.
Okay, so lesson of the day: rest=good. Sushi=also good.
Another, very, very good thing?
One week from today, I will be on a plane to track town to kick off #TotallyTrials with Team Oiselle!
I have a lot to do before then. Including: procuring a dress to wear to the Friday night Oiselle Fashion Show featuring MC Hammer . I’m not quite sure what to sport in a room full of elite athletes and running models that will make me look not terrible, but I’m on a mission to find it. OUaL suggested a muumuu.
Another item on the HugeEug To Do list: finding a cheertastic way around Hayward’s no cowbell policy.
If anyone has any suggestions on how to arm these two trials cheerleaders with something that doesn’t qualify as a “noisemaker”, let us know. We’d like to stand out, without getting kicked out.
For some people, unfortunately not including me, #TotallyTrials kicks off TODAY.
The first event on the schedule is the Hammer Throw, or, appropriately titled for the Oiselle/MC Hammer partyay: Hammertime.
While I love the blood, sweat and tears that fill every raw moment of competition during trials, and the actual olympics, it’s the stories behind the athletes that really get me worked up. The ones that NBC plays, with silly sad video montages and sappy music, and interviews with teary moms about how the athlete overcame near-death and poverty to pursue their Olympic Dreams. Gets me every time.
Today’s HammerTime has a few athletes worth watching.
While the women’s match seems to be pretty locked up by three seriously strong ladies who all achieved the ‘A’ standard (meaning someone would have to both beat them and throw the same qualifying distance in order to unseat them for a spot on the team) there are still a number of inspirational athletes showing up in Beaverton today.
First, Keelin Godsey, another New Englander and NESCAC competitor (which obviously wins over my Green Mountain/Middlebury heart) and transgender athlete, who identifies as a man, but is considered a woman by IOC and IAAF standards.
(I get all warm and fuzzy inside when D-III athletes are competing for spots on the Olympic team. My D-III swim team is sending two (but not in swimming) all the way to London. Take that, Division 1)
Godsey is the first American to ever openly identify as a transgender while pursuing a spot on the US Olympic Team, and just barely threw the qualifying distance in April of this year. Sports Illustrated published a great article on transgender athletes that included some interesting background on his athletic career.
In the men’s race to hammer it out in London, two competitors (A.G. Kruger and Kibwe Johnson) are the only two have reached the ‘A’ standard (or even close to it) so are pretty much wearing their London uniforms to the meet today, but a couple other guys are worth checking out, including:
Travis Nutter. Travis has come SUPERCLOSE to qualifying for the Olympics twice before (first in ‘04 and then in ‘08) and decided to call it quits and retire his hammer for good after a tragically disappointing 4th place finish in 2008.
BUT THEN he was in a car accident that left him feeling lucky to be alive and decided he had “unfinished business” re: his Olympic dreams. So, he’s back and teaching us all to chase our big dreams while we’re around to do the chasing. I’m rooting for you, Nutter!
Check out the full schedule for track trials here, and buckle up, friends, it’s going to be a totally fun ten days of #totallytrials!
Hi, I enjoy your blog and love reading your race recaps. I thought the way you rocked Eugene was just amazing and a perfect example of why we choose to run!
However, I’m a little confused–why not just take a complete rest day (i.e., no working out at all)? 48 hours of pure, unadulterated rest would be so beneficial to your body. The elliptical and weights cannot be considered rest!
Hey Lesley,
Thanks for the comment! I do sometimes take one hundred percent pure rest days, I’ve even taken one very recently, but I prefer to use active rest for recovery days and do easy workouts instead of taking the day off. Based on the level of activity I do, an easy 30 minutes on the elliptical is really not doing much to fatigue my body. Back when I was ironman training last year, this is the schedule my coach had me use and it really worked for me. Trust me, when my body really needs rest, I rest!
That’s cool. :) I’m about 1/500th as active as you, so it’s hard for me to wrap my brain around consistent high mileage coupled with active rest–but of course you know your own body. I hate know-it-all commenters, so I hope I didn’t come across that way (yikes, I probably did; live and learn).
Good luck on your next race/event whenever that may be!
Love your featured athletes! Super interesting…I’ll be rooting for both of them!
I didn’t know you were a D-III swimmer???!!!! HELL YEAHHHHHH D3 SWIMMERS UNITE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOO HOO! (I was too, in case you couldn’t tell… hahaha)
I am SO EXCITED FOR THE OLYMPICS too!!! My fiance and I are obsessed. We have the schedules all set out and all sorts of athlete bios on our walls by the TV so we know who/what to watch and when. It’s kind of a big deal over here.
a VERY VERY SLOW DIII swimmer, but yes! LOVE the enthusiasm for the Olympics! I think it’s totally worth full on obsession!
So exciting you’ll be there so soon!!! No cowbell policy?! That’s crazy!!
Wait wait wait wait WAIT. First of all YOU GET TO MEET MC HAMMER??? Please please PLEASE wear hammer pants to the fashion show!! PLLEAAASSEEEE?? Second… NO COWBELLS? That’s just plain ridiculous. I’ve been going back and forth about going to Eugene next weekend for that same reason – while watching the trials in person is awesome (I went to the diving trials this week and it rocked my socks off) – you just don’t get all that great info you get when you watch it on TV, and that’s sad. Plus your view of the action is WAY worse. So I haven’t decided whether to make the 5 hour trek to Eugene or not. I’m so jealous you’re going to be front row center on the action!
D3 power, dude, D3 power. I remember Sarah Groff kicking my ass in the 500 free. As in, I think she lapped me (really). Now she can beat me even more in triathlon. AWESOME.
Love the story of Travis Nutter. I cry all the time during the Olympics due to stories like these…and I cry whenever anyone’s presented with a medal. It’s a bit embarrassing!!!
Can’t wait for the Olympics. Bring them on.
I am so excited for you that you get to go to the trials! Thank you for sharing all the fun on your blog. I saw Bernard Lagat training the other day in Tucson and freaked out a little. So amazing to see Olympic athletes in person.
Oh man, you made it through 24 of the 48 torturous hours? I dare you to go 48 hours with NO exercise. Betcha couldn’t do it!
In other news, the sports medicine doctor told me that my 5-week running hiatus was not enough, and I can expect to likely take a full two months off. Oh, and he said NO ELLIPTICAL. So that’s kinda bad.
Totally jealous of your trip!!!! Have fun at the trials and parties!
No cowbells!? THE HORROR!!!
That said – a vuvuzuela should do the noise-making trick…