The Countdown Begins....

The countdown begins to the Great White North 1/2 Ironman... only two more sleeps....I have all my gear sorted and ready to go, my clothes are packed, my lists are made for my food, and my nutrition and race plan has been determined. I'm good to go. Phew!

I did most of my organizing last night because I'll be leaving for Stony Plain today, but all week I've been planning and making lists in my head of what I need to do. (That fact will not suprise the parental unit I'm sure, haha.) I did have a wee moment of frustration with my nutrition planning last night. Hmm, maybe frustration isn't the right word. Basically I thought I had it all figured out, but then found out the amounts I had planned on might not be enough. I think I may have a touch of pre-race jitters because for some reason that threw me off. I started second guessing all the prep I have done. Oh well, I'm totally over it and think I now have a better handle on number of carbs and calories per hour etc. I'm thankful that I was made aware of the mistake now rather than later otherwise that might have really bunged up my race!!

Race day nutrition is one of those things that I find hard to master. I have stomach issues with just normal food, so trying to find a product that doesn't make my stomach go topsy turvy when I'm on the bike or run has been hard. The difficult part has been finding something that is a liquid, but is not all sugar. I prefer using liquids to solids as most of the solid products out there tend not to agree with me in race type situations. However, it's harder to get the calories needed with just liquid. The sugar in them usually brings up the calories and carb content, but it tends to leave me feeling very sick once I start the run. Hopefully I have got it sorted out now with the Perpeteum, and all will go well on Sunday. I won't know till I try it!

Tonight is the carb dinner and race meeting. Saturday we'll do a very short swim/bike/run session and talk about any final concerns or whatnot, then just rest up. Sunday is the big day...8am sharp!

I have to say, I'm totally stoked about this race. The GWN triathlon was my first and has been my only 1/2 Ironman to date. I did it last year and aside from stomach issues, I had a lot of fun. My goal then was just to finish, which I did. This year will be another story. This year I am going to RACE. I plan to push my mental and physical boundaries and I can't wait!! Greg has a great quote on his blog, "Only those who risk going to far can possibly find out how far they can go" ~ T.S. Elliot. I've written the quote down and will be putting it up in my hotel room so I can see it. It captures what this weekend will be about for me.

Of course the bottom line, racing or not, is to HAVE FUN!!! I most definately plan on doing that above all else. After all, if it's not fun, why the heck do it??