Yup… this is my # for the 2014 Boston Marathon! I will be in wave 4 starting at 11:25 am. What a late start to the day! This year I am raising money for charity so I don’t have the luxury of starting with the qualifiers. I actually started in the 20K’s in 2003 when I ran with a charity slot. It will be a long day, but a fun one

My big toe is healing up nicely 13+ weeks post fracture. I am lucky to have a 17 miler under my belt before the marathon. It’s not a 20 miler, but it will do. I am actually feeling good and with a little tape on my big toe I should be good to go. I was fortunate to recover post runs with my fabulous Normatec compression boots. I have to say the best investment I have made in a while

A quick update on my efforts to raise money for Expect Miracles… I surpassed my fundraising target of $7500!! Whoop! Whoop! I am still raising money through Marathon Monday, so please donate if you are looking to support a great cause.

Check it out…Donation Link:
http://www.crowdrise.com/expectmiracles2014bostonmarathon/fundraiser/michellejoaquin

I am off to BOSTON… see ya’ll on the east coast

Filed under: Quick Notes

A few weeks ago on vacation in Mexico I broke my big toe. I really don’t have a good story to tell. I kicked a step in the pool area wearing flip-flops. I must have been walking pretty fast to actually break my toe in more than on place. My friend Kerry always told me I walk fast with a purpose. Well, I guess that is true.

I haven’t run in 3 weeks, but the good news is after 2 weeks off I was able to start biking. I am hoping to run starting later this week with a tape job. I just need to be smart and not do too much too fast. I am an old pro at that. If need be I can always do pool running which I am expert at

The good news is I am almost at my fundraising goal of $7500 for Expect Miracles Foundation. I am really psyched I get to run and support a great cause. Check it out…Donation Link:
http://www.crowdrise.com/expectmiracles2014bostonmarathon/fundraiser/michellejoaquin

More updates to follow as I start back up running over the next couple of weeks!

Filed under: Quick Notes

It has been quite some time since I have done run training without biking and swimming. I have to say it is a lot easier to manager; however, with my history of stress fractures I need to be very careful. It’s all about training smart and recovering smarter.

I am two weeks into a 19 week training program I wrote with the QT2 Systems and Your 26.2 training protocols. I wouldn’t have it any other way! For all those diehard runners out there, it’s OK to heart rate train as a runner… it’s not just a triathlon thing I have to say it is tough taking a step back and staying in my HR zones. At times I just want to take off, but I know patience will get me where I need to be come April.

I am really looking forward to running Boston again…especially with Expect Miracles Foundation Meet the running team who will be focused on raising money in the fight against cancer.

https://www.expectmiraclesfoundation.org/expect-miracles-racing-team-2012

I am also very happy to have some of my California crew running Boston next year… David, Bransby, Jon, Kerry, Kim, and Shawn. Running together and exchanging training stories is fun and it does help with the motivation at times

A quick update on the fundraising for Expect Miracles Foundation. To date I have raised $3,750 with all of your generous donations. That does not include company matching, so I am very pleased. Thanks to all who have donated!! I really want to make it to 10K by April. I know it can be done!

A little incentive for those in the giving spirit… donations made before 12/22 will be entered to win (4) EMC CLUB Tickets to FROZEN FENWAY with access to the private EMC Club!

Saturday, January 4, 2014
EMC Club Section 4, Row 3
Fenway Park
BC V.S. NOTRE DAME
PROVIDENCE V.S. MERRIMACK

Donation link below:

http://www.crowdrise.com/expectmiracles2014bostonmarathon/fundraiser/michellejoaquin

Have a very happy and safe holiday season!

Filed under: Quick Notes, Uncategorized

I am really excited to be returning to the Boston Marathon in 2014. This go round will be especially meaningful as I am running with Expect Miracles Foundation, a leading advocate in the fight against cancer within the financial services industry. See more here: https://www.expectmiraclesfoundation.org

Cancer has touched many of our lives. My mom lost her battle to cancer at the young age of 49. I am participating in this even for her and all of the other strong, amazing, men and women living with cancer today. I will be updating my training and fundraising progress on my blog in the months leading up to the marathon.

SUPPORT the FIGHTERS
ADMIRE the SURVIVORS
HONOR the TAKEN
AND NEVER EVER GIVE UP HOPE

Please join forces with me by making a donation. Together, we can make a difference!

http://www.crowdrise.com/expectmiracles2014bostonmarathon/fundraiser/michellejoaquin

Filed under: Quick Notes

The last time I blogged was back in May of 2012 after IM Texas. Not sure why I never wrote a post on IM Florida which I did in November 2012… in summary, it was more of a fun race without my typical training regiment. Lets just say I will NEVER do an IM again without training the right way. Lesson learned on my part.

This year has been about having fun with training and racing (short course) and testing the waters with some new adventures. Along with doing some road races, short course triathlon, and one half IM, I was able to get in some hiking. For the first time I did a multiple day run relay with a coworker. We did the Hood to Coast in Portland, Oregon. Nothing like being with 6 people in a car for 20+ hours. It was super fun and I met a lot of cool people… or should I say type A runners!?!

I also joined a group of coworkers in organizing a pretty cool event to raise money for Doctors Without Borders… The Billy Goat Challenge. I am Iron Goat given my ironman status. The plan is to bike 135 miles from Badwater to the base of Mt. Whitney. A group of hikers will hike Mt. Whitney after us bikers finish. I actually bought a new road bike for this journey. There was no way I could do it on my trusty tri bike. Turbo would not have been so turbo and with 90 miles of hills speed is not really important.

Unfortunately, The Billy Goat Challenge was to be Columbus Day weekend, but the government shutdown has impacted the event. National forests/parks are closed so the hikers can’t hike and some roads down in Death Valley area are closed too. That creates a problem for us bikers. So the event will take place in June 2014 or in September 2014. Such a bummer as we have raised 17K for DWB already… looks like we will just keep raising money

I plan to close the year out with a 10 miler the end of October and then start training for Boston Marathon. I just need to find a charity to run for… more to follow HAPPY! HAPPY!

Filed under: Quick Notes

First, I must say that this was a really great Ironman and I would most definitely recommend it to those athletes that can withstand the heat. The day was hot, but at least the roads on the bike were nice and the run was full of spectators. The swim course was quite interesting once you hit the narrow waterway. Lots of athletes = lots of chop

After taking last year off from ironman, I kind of forgot what the iron day was like. I knew I had put in adequate training to get through the day; however, you never know what the day can bring. A month prior I somehow strained my soleus muscle pretty bad, so once again it was very little running before the big day. Typical! Hey, at least my toes looked good

The day started off as usual with the nice early morning apple sauce, sport drink, protein shake, and a banana breakfast. I took that down quick and then went back to bed. Before I knew it my alarm was going off and it was time to motivate. I was traveling with my friend and teammate Jen who was also racing. We travel well together as we are both type A and have an order to everything
Anyway…It is always dark in the morning because we are out there at 5:30 am! Picture lots of athletes scrambling around in transition trying to get their bikes together in the dark. Such a cluster!

After Jen and I got our bikes situated and dropped the goods in our transition bags, we headed on our mile walk to the swim start. Now that is one thing that was annoying. It was just too much walking before having to go 140.6. The race was wetsuit illegal, so those athletes that wore legal swim skins or no suit at all, were able to start at 7 am, 10 minutes before the others. I thought it would make a big difference, but it seemed that everyone skipped the wetsuit, so not much of an advantage there…good news had turned into no news

We had to go down a ramp into deep water to get to the swim start. No fun seeing my fellow athletes did not want to get in and all I could hear was Mike Riley yelling at us to get in and swim up to the buoys. Needless to say, I was in and treading water for almost 10 minutes. It was like the Kona start. I got right up in the front and as soon as the gun went off, I put my head down and just swam hard. I was able to settle in, but no drafting really. It was such a weird swim. I felt like I was in slow motion, which must have been the swim skin. It just seemed so LONG. I finally turned into the narrow waterway and thats when I just wanted to be done. It was rough swimming down that narrow path. When I finally got to the exit stairs, I totally bit it. The volunteer guy grabbed me by my arm like I was a little kid and boosted me out by my bum! I just laughed out loud. Decent non wetsuit swim… 1:12

I don’t know what it is, but when I get out of the water I like to sprint to transition, grab my bag, and hit the change tent. I don’t breath until I get in the change tent. It was an easy transition thanks to the 4 volunteers helping me out. I was all suited up and ready to grab my bike and go. Once I got on the open road I just settled in and started talking myself through the long ride. I was totally fine until about mile 60 or so when the head wind greeted me. Now that was tough for about 30 miles and then it let up. Of course it started to get hot out there and all I could do was stay hydrated, fueled, and cool. I did get into a mental game with myself at one point, but I snapped out of it. That happens sometimes Other than the headwind, there was nothing really crazy that happened on the bike. I finished in a time a little slower than I expected, but I was just happy to be done and get my running shoes on.

In transition there was one important thing for me to do… dump the ice cold bottle of water from my T2 bag over my head to cool me down. So glad I froze a water bottle the night before… very helpful. As I headed out to the run course with my banana I felt good. I just stuck to my HR plan and continued to run and hold the pace as long as I could. The first few miles I saw some of my QT2 crew out there… thanks for cheering so LOUD. Chrissie and Courney are the best cheerleaders, and Tim always gets me moving with his drill sergeant like yelling!

The first 8 miles of the run I felt great. As I made it to the second loop a pretty big side stitch came on. I am glad I had my salt tabs. I started taking one at every aid station until I ran out. I had to walk about a half mile before I could start running again, but I bounced back. I went with the run walk method. From mile 9 on I ran as hard as I could to the aid stations and then power walked through while I drank and cooled myself off- IM perform down the hatchet, water over the head, ice down the shirt, sponges all over. It was 93 degrees and pretty darn hot out there. I saw Coach Jesse on his last loop while I was at mile 16 or so. He totally gave me a boost! I saw a snake slither past me in the wood path which was kind of cool. I had fun out there giving the little kids high 5’s and dancing for the LuLu Lemon cheerleaders. Great crowd! I ended up finishing strong and running a 3:46… i will take!

Overall, a great day with a finish of 10:54… good for 8th in my AG. I am pleased with my performance and look forward to racing Ironman Florida in November. Yeah it was a decision made in less than a day… thanks to my friend Jen

Congrats to all my QT2 teammates that raced. It was such an amazing day for everyone!

Up next: NYC Tri, Boulder 70.3, and Orangeman 70.3… all pre Florida!

HAPPY TRI SEASON…and HAPPY TRAINING! Be safe out there!

Filed under: Race Reports

The last time I raced a half was early last year in Puerto Rico. I was going into this race with a 5 K, half marathon, a sprint tri, and some serious training under my belt. I was really wanting to get out there and race. I have to say I was OK with how the day turned out. As Coach Jesse stated… “good start to clearing the cobwebs”… kind of funny because it was true.

Quick summary- 5:15; 7th AG

swim – decent given temps and the swells
bike – on the fence… total mud/dirt fest with the rain
run – slow, but valid due to a lower leg issue I have been battling the last few weeks (update: I was able to run practically pain free yesterday for 30 mins… good news!)

I am not going to rattle off excuses for my performance, but instead take it at face value and focus on my A race- IM Texas. I am in the home stretch almost… less than 6 weeks to go. Monday marked the start of my two overload weeks and then it will be all downhill pretty much.

What I am looking forward to most is racing with my QT2 Systems teammates. This has been quite the lonely season out here away from the crew. It was nice to have my friend and teammate Jen come out for Oceanside to race… and hit Knott’s Berry Farm amusement park the day after the race

*Notes to self: I must not talk myself out of what I am capable of…know I have the training and nutrition behind me (thanks to QT2)… work on mental fitness because it is VERY important.

Happy TRI season!

Filed under: Race Reports

The past couple of months of training have been quite productive and I am finally feeling back on track. The last time I wrote, I had recapped my first 5K after one 5 week block of training. Since then, I have completed two additional training blocks of base training, two blocks of build, a half marathon, an indoor time trial, and a sprint triathlon.

After battling a cold at the tail end of my first build block, I had to forgo the Surf City Half Marathon. I was really bummed as it was right down the street in Huntington Beach and it was flat The good thing is I found another half marathon the following weekend out in Palm Springs. Yup I made my first trip out to the desert. The drive was quite scenic…

Palm Springs was surrounded by mountains. It seemed as though someone decided to blow a hole in the middle of a mountain range and build a town. Everywhere you looked there were mountains! The roads seemed rather long and flat and the winds were kicking up dust and tumbleweed.

Of course the race director found some winding roads and a few climbs for early on in the race. But whatever, it was still a fun race. I can’t complain as it was not close to the brutal Hyannis Half down the cape in the cold winter along the water. I must stop complaining! Overall, I had a decent day. I did not PR by any means, but it sure was good to be back out there racing. I ended up 3rd in my age group and 10th female overall.

I was definitely sore most of the week, but I liked the pain. I really didn’t have any recovery time, as I had a full workout week ahead and the BTT indoor TT that following Sunday out in Boston. I mad the trip back to Boston to see friends and family… and of course to see some of my QT2 cronies and tri friends. The indoor TT was a fun day and I was psyched with my performance. I finally had a good TT… and felt maybe I could have gone a bit harder. I won my heat, which was huge for me, and place 4th OA in the open women’s division. I’ll take it!

It was back to the west coast to have another full training week without a race or TT. I really wanted a recovery week, but I had to tough it out. The week of training had come and gone and finally, it was recovery time. I had an easy week culminating with the Desert Triathlon Series Sprint out in La Quinta. Yup that meant another trip to the desert. Once again a drive out through the pretty desert… kidding

Actually, the race venue area was nice. The swim was in a man made spring of some sort. I think it was a spring or reservoir because the water was pretty darn cold. The bike course was pretty flat and the run was quite odd actually. The run was over a gravel dirt type trail around the reservoir. So not expecting that at all. I should have done better research when I was there the day before doing a practice swim and getting my race packet. I was like a rookie again… I guess a year off of triathlon will do that to you!

A quick Sprint recap… the swim was terrible… i was in a panic most of the time, but made it through. I honestly forgot how bad the swims are…especially in sprints as there are mostly newbies. I was a newbie again! Crazy! Here is a snapshot of the water we swam in.

I was happy getting out of the water, until I realized I had to run on gravel to get to transition. I made it, but not before I stubbed my big toe…grrr! My transition was pretty quick one I got over to my bike. I was actually excited to test out the Cervelo in a race… got it last year, but never raced with it, or the disc wheel Of course I almost got ran off the rode in the first mile by another participant. Nothing like paying attention when someone is yelling “on your left”… he actually hit my back wheel hard and somehow I managed to gain control of the bike and not fall. The bike was flat maybe one false flat. I rode OK, but to as hard as I could have. I felt like I was working hard, but I wasn’t. It just felt like I was… probably from doing three races within 4 weeks with not much rest. Anyway… T2 was not as quick as T1… oh the little tricks we can forget so fast. I remember now! The run was not what I expected, but I ran just fine. I finished up the run in 3rd place in my AG. Another fun day.

Doing a tri before Oceanside 70.3 was a good test run. I hadn’t done a tri since Puerto Rico 70.3 early 2011.

I am really looking forward to breaking into the intense training over the next 4 weeks pre Oceanside. Let the countdown begin…

Filed under: Race Reports

It seems like ages since my last race! I guess 7 months is ages (in dog years maybe.) Today was my first race back since Boston Marathon… and as a California resident. I ran the Dinosaur 5K in Tustin, CA, along with several elementary school students, parents, local track teams, newbie runners, elite runners, and a TON of other local folks. Before I get on with the brief race cap, I will admit, I got my arse handed to me by an 8 year old… no joke. I am not sure if it is a California thing or what, but these young kids were serious runners. I actually heard there was a 12 year old training for their first marathon. I think it is great… is it a west coast thing, or have times really changed since I started in the race scene? Anyway…

I woke up excited to get out there an actually race. With 5 weeks of training behind me, it was time for a quick check to see how the training was coming along. The weather forecast was rain, but the sun was out. I was psyched, but not for long. As race time neared, the clouds started to roll in, along with the rain. I figured it would be quite crazy if it rained given the amount of people. Just to give you an idea, there was a 2K, 5K, 10K, and two bike races… CRAZY times.

At the start line there was a 6 year old and her mom to my right and a 9 year old boy to my left. I checked; I was in the right race. The announcer did the 3-2-1 countdown and we were off. I stayed at a pace I thought I could hold for the short time. I was doing OK until I was getting passed by kids! I checked my Garmin to be sure it was working… all good. Just totally getting rocked by kids. Mile one down… 2 down… legs feeling fine, but pace slipping, heart may pounding out of my chest, 3 down, time to really sprint to the end… done! Still alive?….check!

I was able to pull of a 6:54 pace… yeah it takes some time to get back up to speed I am telling ya, they need to bring recess to the corporate world so I can get my anaerobic training in… those kids were insane out there today.

Next 5K in a 4 weeks. Feeling great and looking forward to gaining some more fitness over the next few weeks!

Filed under: Quick Notes, Race Reports

Today was my first day back on a real training program since June or July… it’s been so long I can’t even remember! I was doing some workouts here and there, but nothing consistent since my decision to move cross country. SO EXCITED to be working towards an Ironman again

The day started out with a weigh in using the good old Ironman scale. Enough said! I need to chop off a leg to get to race weigh… holy cow… seriously! Time to get back on The Core Diet – www.thecorediet.com. My first day was easy… ask me in like a month how I am feeling
I am back in the gym lifting which should be interesting seeing I am sore already. I hit the pool for a quick swim too. The pool is outside, salt water, and heated year round. I am lucky and have no excuses to not get my swim in. Again… EXCITED!!

Looking forward to my first long ride this weekend… I will be riding up the PCH!

Don’t forget to tune into Ironman Live to see update from IM World Championships on Saturday!! GOOD LUCK to all of my QT2 teammates racing!!

Filed under: Training