Frame Done

I got my frame back from Michael's, after having it redone - as the dimensions were wrong the first time I got it back. I think it turned out pretty good! It has my Finisher Certificate, my Bib, my medal, a plaque with my times and my finisher photo.

Tat is Good!

Well, the tattoo is holding up and staying on! Been lotion-ing it up frequently, per instructions from Lucky. Doesn't really hurt at all, but a little scabbing is starting on the M-dot. I stopped by spin class on Thursday to do the unveiling to the peeps. Then took off...no spinning for me! So far I'm happy with the location that it was put at. Went to the gym last night to lift weights and it stuck out 'just enough' from my t-shirt to be visible with my hair up. Perfect!

 

So, now that I got the M-dot...now what? I don't know the answer to that yet. I have been resting this month and trying to take it easy. I may start going back to spin class in November, but not at the frequency and intensity that I did last season.

I have no real plans for races next season, yet. I will debate that this winter and see what I want to do...for sure it will be shorter distances and all for fun. For now, I'm just trying to readjust to my extra time and figure out what (outside of triathlon training) I want to focus on and or take up that I could not do over the past year due to training.

I will keep up the blog, but it may have a little less frequency of postings...due to less intensity and energy focused on training over Fall/Winter months. We'll see! It may transform into something totally different. Who knows?

I Finally Got My M-Dot!!!

Today was the big day! I headed to see Lucky at noon for my tattoo appointment. I got there and he got me all set up with my tattoo design on my neck and Jake showed up shortly after that to oversee the procedure. The inking didn't hurt that bad... I think that the worst part was the positioning that I had to hold my head/neck in for that extended period of time! So, I was pretty much gagged laying on this bed, trying to keep my neck stretched out for the inking for over 2 hours! In the end, I think it ended up good! I got my M-dot and I think it turned out awesome! He even put in a little 'pink lightning bolt' in one of the swirls to commemorate my bike! So cool!!! Noelle showed up to watch the activity and photograph, and then Jen and Val arrived for their appointments after mine! When I got off the table from finishing the tattoo - I was really light headed. Felt like I was totally drunk! I think that the head position that I sat in for that period of time was just enough to make me a bit loopy. It took about an hour or so to feel a bit better. Jen got her tat done on her calf - looked awesome!!! Then Val bucked up and got hers done too, on her calf. Turned out really nice too! All-in-all, we had some really good ink done today! Afterwards, Jen and Val and I headed out to grab some grub and some drinks at a local establishment. Ironman Heidi joined us, but we couldn't show her our tats because they were all under bandages! Oh well...we'll display them tomorrow at spin class, I guess. 

 

Jen - Pre-tattoo

Outline Complete

Lucky Working on 'Swirls'

Getting Back Into It...

Today I'm a bit sore, from doing one of my new workouts from Nicole yesterday. Was actually nice to hit the gym again after taking some time off. I ended up doing a brief warm-up on the stair mill with Jake and Carmilla, then about an hour of my total-body weightlifting session - including my rehab stuff. This week I need to get out all my winter clothes (as we had our first snow yesterday), and go through the painful process of trying things on and tossing things out. Should be an interesting endeavor, as my post-Ironman weight loss is making my clothing options interesting. Not that I'm complaining, mind you - just makes things interesting. Guess I need to go shopping!

Time Off and Trainer Day

So, for the past few weeks since Ironman, I have been giving myself some much needed rest. The leg/foot numbness has been minimal, but still there - so I've been keeping up with my rehab exercises. Other than that, a few visits to the gym to lift weights, but no swimming, biking or running (for the most part). Today, I went back to Nicole (trainer) to get some measurements taken and some new workouts to ease myself back into the world of weights. I actually have dropped some weight since Ironman, and I was anticipating seeing that coming from lost muscle (due to not working out). However, my measurements indicated that I had dropped almost NO muscle, all the weight from fat - thus dropping my body fat by 1.75%! Amazingly, this level is the lowest that I have been at (that I know of) since monitoring my body composition over the past 7 years with Nicole. Woo hoo! So, my plan is (for now) just to do some weight lifting and low to moderate cardio in a non-scheduled manner - since my life has been run by workout calendars for the past 1-2 years and I just need to rest my body with the whole bulging disc thing. But, I want to maintain my current body composition levels (obviously). 

 Today, I also got my Ironman frameset back today from Michael's, containing my medal, bib number, finisher's certificate, time plaque and finishing picture. I'm not overly excited about how it turned out, as the frame is WAY too big and everything is matted very far apart. So I will be taking it back to get redone. Grr.. Now, all I have to get is that darn M-dot tattoo! Stay tuned...next Wednesday is the big day!!!

Tattoo Consultation

Today, me, Jen and Val went to see Lucky to get our consutation done for our tattoo! We met at the tattoo shop in Maple Grove and laid out our ideas for Lucky to sketch and mull over. We all are kind of sitting in a similiar design mode - which was funny.

Mine: I will be getting my M-Dot on the back of my neck, so that when I'm working out (or racing), you can see the tat with my hair up in a ponytail. However, put the hair down - and it's 'professional-Jen' with no tattoo showing. Clever, eh? I want the M-Dot with some swirly lines and stars, and maybe a small lighting bolt to give some props to "Pink Lightning". We'll see how the final design turns out.

Jen: Jen is going for a side-of-calf M-Dot, with some swirly-leafy design. Leaving some room for when she completes Ironman Canada next year to put in a maple leaf.

Val: Val is also going for a side-of-calf M-Dot with swirly lines and star-bursts, but integrating that design into the butterfly tattoo that she has at her ankle.

We're set up for our actual tattoo appointments on Oct 14th! Us three are all going in, back-to-back. So we'll have Lucky all day long - poor guy! So stay tuned for the final result!