Hi everyone! Happy Friday! TGIF! Fri-Yay! I don’t know why but this has definitely been one of those weeks where I have been counting down to the weekend. It’s been so beautiful outside (although crazy hot) and I’m just ready to spend the weekend biking, running, and being by the pool to cool off. Can’t imagine a better way to spend these summer days :)
At the end of the post, I’m going to share with you all 5 Triathlon Training Mistakes I’ve made. Trust me, they are good and embarrassing, so you’ll want to stick around til the end of the ramblings to hear about them ;) 
My mom just sent me the photo from above when we all went to the Del Mar Dog Beach last week! This was the very beginning of us trying to get Elle into the water. As you can see, she is clearly NOT having it. 
Mid-day selfie. Sometimes I wonder what I’m suppose to share with you all after a long day of sitting in my cube. Also, I was having a good hair day. Ladies, you can relate, right? ;) 
This salad from Stone Brewery was bomb dot com. A couple girlfriends, Elle, and I went out to the brewery last night for beers, pretzels, and a long overdue catch up session. We all ordered salads for dinner without realizing it. There is something about summers that just make me crave fresh produce.
Not pictured: Eggs that came with the salad that I ended up giving to Elle. 
I told Anthony he needs to get the back seat from now on. Elle is a much better copilot who doesn’t complain about how I drive at snails pace. 
Missing the family! It sure would be nice if my mom and sister lived a little closer or on the same coast. The traveling between California and Florida is getting old. Plus, who knew a three hour time difference could make such a difference in communication?!
My boss at work as been having a rough couple of weeks. One of her dogs is really old and the vet just delivered some bad news to her and her husband yesterday. Our staff chipped in and created a little goody basket for them and their dogs. Target, you are the real MVP.
As many of you know, I started training for my first triathlon this year. A week before my first race, I decided to go and break my collarbone, which will be a part of the 5 training mistakes I have made. It made me realize the things I was doing wrong, despite having teammates, a coach, and a lot of friends in this sport. There were just trials and errors I had to make on my own to either 1) listen to the advice everyone gives me, specifically my coach, Felipe, and friend, Jason or 2) become a better athlete.
- Being too competitive right from the start: I am pretty competitive by nature. In a lot of ways, it is good. But as I’ve learned in training and in real life, it can get me into a lot of trouble, like caring more about my times on the bike than safely getting comfortable riding, or how fast I can swim a lap even though I could have terrible form. As I am building up and growing in this sport, I need to put aside my competitiveness and just focus on improving as an athlete.
- Comparing myself to others: This goes hand in hand with being too competitive. I love training with my team and I’ve made so many great friends through triathlon. But when your friends are Ironmans and Ironwomans or podiuming every weekend, it is pretty easy to get frustrated when you’re still struggling with shifting gears on a new bike. Or if you’re getting dropped on rides or lapped at track. I just have to tell myself everyone started from somewhere and 3-4 years ago, they were in my shoes as well!
- Wondering why this isn’t coming as easily as running to me: I’m not the fastest runner by any means and it took me awhile to build up the endurance and pace I am able to run now. But something about running just came more easily and naturally to me. It just clicked and I keep thinking that triathlon is going to feel the same. However, even when you read stories of how Jesse Thomas got started in the sport or how Mirinda Carfrae’s swim coach really doubted her ability in the water, you realize that just because one of the three or two of the three sports in triathlon comes easily, doesn’t mean they all will. You have to put in time and hard work. Slowly but surely, the pieces will start to come together!
- Doing things you aren’t comfortable doing just because everyone else is: Looking back, I really should have waited a little bit longer to get a tri bike and a little bit longer to get into aero bars. I didn’t understand my bike, I didn’t have the confidence or balance, and it really is no wonder that I broke my collarbone. Every ride and every race now will be a huge opportunity to get better at my bike handling skills until I am really ready to start upping the speed and getting faster on the course. Slow and steady wins the race!
- Putting on your wetsuit inside out: To end on a funny note, I’m sure you all remember THAT debacle. PEOPLE. The really colorful side of your wetsuit: chances are, it is the inside lining and not what the actual color of the wetsuit should be! Also! Find up true to your size. It is suppose to be really, really tight, and suffocating. Otherwise, you’re not doing it right ;)
Any rookie mistakes from a sport you do?
I have some Wednesday random ramblings for you. Whenever these happen, it’s from me looking through some photos on my phone and realizing there is still so much to share with you all. Like the photo above of the adorable baby I babysat last Saturday night! He is the son of two of my teammates and they needed a well deserved date night. I had told them I would love to watch him and after a long brick workout on Saturday, snuggle with a baby Saturday night was exactly what I needed. We had a great time playing around with the Snapchat filters. 
7 months old and already trying to hold the bottle on his own. Someone is definitely an independent baby! We enjoyed our deep conversations of the trains on his pajamas and triathlon. His parents would be proud of all that I’m teaching him. 
PSA: The Pink Drink at Starbucks is definitely worth the hype! I’m not going to lie- I’m pretty boring when it comes to my caffeine drinks. Normally, I prefer black coffee or tea but I was so curious about this combo. Ask for the Strawberry Acai Refresher but instead of water, add coconut milk. Even if you don’t like coconut, you won’t be able to taste it in this drink! So creamy, refreshing, and delicious. Let me know what you think.
The poke bowl obsession lives on! Anthony and I think our wallets are in trouble since they opened up a poke bowl place that is walking distance from our house. Salmon/Tuna mixed with salad and rice really hit the spot before going grocery shopping Monday night. 
I figured you would all be entertained by Elle’s face in this photo. She loves to sit between Anthony and I on car rides, but that does not translate into loving selfies. If she could talk, I bet you she is saying “mom, you’re so embarrassing” while rolling her eyes. 
And I’m just going to leave this post with the glorious photo above of the donuts at Donut Bar. Anyone who comes to visit San Diego has to check this place out. Literally donuts the size of your head with really unique flavor combos. One of the donuts has an entire Poptart in it!
The lines for all donut shops on National Donut Day were crazy!!! I postponed the celebration until Saturday morning. After an hour and twenty minutes on the trainer, this coconut chocolate donut sure hit the spot. 
The rest of Saturday consisted a lot of relaxing, time on the couch, and with my good friend, Netflix. Bo Burnham just came out with a new comedy piece that Anthony and I found hilarious. Near tears at some of his jokes!! 
This Snapchat was pretty accurate with a cute snoozing pup next to us:) 
Sunday ended up being a lot more of a productive day, starting with an early puppy training class, then acai bowls in Pacific Beach. Does anyone else have problems with their name being spelled correctly? Happens to me all the time no matter where I go. 
Post acai bowls was time to go up to Encinitas for a new bike helmet at my favorite bike shop, Nytro Multisport, and then a visit to the best dog park I’ve ever been to. Anyone in San Diego with a pooch, I highly recommend the Encinitas Community Park. It is family and kids friendly with baseball and football fields, play areas, and a skate park!
Does anyone know how we can get a puppy to look at the camera? 
Since we don’t end up in Encinitas very often, we wanted to take advantage of local hot spots and of course, had to cross of a brewery on our list, the Lost Abbey. 
And finished off the day with 7 treadmill miles. Great way to end the day and I’m so happy to be incorporating long distance running back into my schedule 5 weeks after surgery. I was feeling pretty bummed when I woke up this morning because it was the first time in 4 years I wasn’t doing some version of the Rock n Roll 1/2 Marathon or Full Marathon. Excited to get back out there soon stronger than ever. 
Had to sit on the ground for awhile after that one. Thank goodness for a cold bottle of water and Miss USA playing at the gym to keep me entertained during my stretch and cool down period.
RunMileswithSmiles 