I bought this book called “The Female Triathlete” about three years ago. I had just given birth to my second daughter, Alena, and had started running again. I didn’t know when, but I knew that I eventually wanted to do a triathlon. I ran consistently for about two years, and then last spring, finally picked up the book. I read it in its entirety, made myself a training program and did my first triathlon in July 2010.

At one point, I offered it to my husband, an inexperienced swimmer, to read the technique tips and training drills for the pool. Although I can’t remember if he read it or not, I remember realizing that marketing that book to women was ridiculous. It dawned on me that the only reason it was titled “The Female Triathlete” instead of “The Triathlete” was because it had been written by a woman. The only difference between male and female athletes, when looking at training drills and techniques is the fact that women have their period to deal with. There’s usually one chapter dedicated to a combination of iron suppliments, period “stuff” (I’ll leave it vague, since if you’re a woman, I’m sure you’ve read the chapter and if you’re a man, you don’t really want to know), the importance of calcium and probably a quick blurb about pregnancy.

My favourite running book, John Stanton’s Book on Running has this chapter, so obviously a man is qualified to do research on this subject and publish it. So why is a book written by a man marketed as a unisex training guide, while the book written by a women is marketed solely to women? Because men wouldn’t buy it.

(Should I duck and cover now?)

Look, sorry if this offends anyone, but the fact is that women are STILL regarded as less than men in many, many ways. We may dominate races in numbers, we are the fastest growing group in marathons, we occupy half of the work force, half of the population, but still we can’t write a damn book and have men read it? Why is it acceptable for John Stanton* to give me (totally solid) advice about being a menstruating runner while most men wouldn’t look twice at any sort of training book written by a woman? Regardless of the fact that it was written by an elite athlete who is very likely more experienced and faster than any person reading her book would be.

This was all supposed to be an introduction into a concern I have, but I kind of got away from myself didn’t I? Anyway, as a disclaimer, if you’re not interested in reading about “The Female Runner and Her Womanly Issues” I suggest you close your browser now.

So, as we all know, one week out of every month sucks. Aside from the 3-5lbs you pack on, the Tostitos you may eat in abundance, the cramps and, if you’re like me, the seven-day headache that borders on migraine and near-constant sense of nausea, there is exhaustion. Oh, exhaustion.

Too tired to worry much about the maintenance of my life, you can usually find me laying on the couch “watching” Dora with my kids (and by watching, I mean watching it with my eyes closed). The weights are heavier, the runs are longer the hills are steeper, it’s just the way. I am in tune enough with my body that I give myself leeway that week and take it easier than usual. When I’m not training for something, I’ll even take the week off if I really need to. When your body says “Rest” then rest you should.

I had a 34k run planned today and turned around at the 8k mark. It just wasn’t happening (for all of the above stated reasons). No biggie, I’ll run 35k next week and then start my taper. It makes me a little nervous that the past three weeks have been very light on kilometres due to final exams and then vacation and then an unexpected road trip to help a friend out, but there’s nothing I can do about that now, and so I focus on the next four weeks. Which brings me to my point of concern.

Four weeks from now means three weeks of strong running and then a week of headaches and fatigue. Right in conjunction with race day. And there doesn’t seem to be a damn thing I can do about it.

Now, I’ve found, in my racing experience, that the body can do magical things on race day. For example, last year at the end of my triathlon, I ran a 24 minute 5k. I have never before and never since been able to match that pace. I have run as fast as I could with fresh legs and not come close to the time I ran it in after swimming 750 metres and biking 20k. Adrenaline is an amazing force. Maybe at the end of next month, my body will somehow find energy that is usually lacking. Maybe the (frustrating but always so effective) tapering will have my legs jittering in such an excited way that I won’t feel exhausted within the first kilometre.

Que sera sera, I suppose. But it still isn’t going to stop me from fretting about it for the next month.

*No offense to John Stanton, I’ve mentioned many times how valuable a resource his books have been to me.

The Canadian International Learning Foundation (CanILF) is putting together a fundraising team for Ottawa Race Weekend, and they’re looking for runners!  If you’re running one of the races and are looking to give back, you might want to consider this worthwhile cause.

CanILF is an Ottawa-based charity that works to provide post-secondary education in areas affected by war, illness and poverty.  One of their main successes is the financial support they have provided to Afghan School Project – the school, located in Kandahar, has provided courses in business, management, information technology and more, and has resulted in over 500 graduates obtaining employment or promotions since it began in 2007.  While the school is open to all students, there is a focus on providing educational opportunities to women, taking a grassroots approach to turning systemic poverty and discrimination on its head.  CanILF also trains mentors in Canada and abroad, provides scholarships and educational equipment, and offers online courses.

Another great thing about CanILF is that, as far as raising money for charity, it’s a pretty good bang for the buck!  The cost to provide educational opportunities in these areas is only $10-25 per student per month, so they’re hoping runners will raise about $60 each – not a huge stretch for the average fundraising amateur.  It’s also an opportunity to support our Canadian Forces mission, in a round-about way; the common goal is to support the rebuilding of Afghanistan, and CanILF’s programs are a great opportunity for the average, non-enlisted Canadian to help out.

To learn more, visit the CanILF website, and check out the press release below:

_______________________________

Join the Canadian International Learning Foundation’s Race Weekend Team!

Are you taking part in Ottawa’s Race Weekend? Would you like to help students struggling to overcome war and poverty? If so, you can join the Canadian International Learning Foundation (CanILF) Ottawa Race Weekend Team and help provide scholarships for students in Afghanistan and Uganda.

When it costs as little as $10 per month to send a student to school, you don’t have to raise a lot of money to make a big difference. We’re looking for runners to join our Team to raise money for scholarships, with the suggested goal of raising $60 per runner. We’re hoping to send at least four students to school for a year – half at the Afghan-Canadian Community Center in Kandahar, and half at the Kabira Adult Attention and School of Orphans in the Rakai District of Uganda.

CanILF is a volunteer charity that mentors educators and provides student scholarships and educational equipment at partner schools in areas affected by war, illness and poverty – to learn more, visit www.canilf.org. Ottawa Race Weekend is the perfect opportunity for runners (and walkers) of all types to get together to raise awareness about this important cause.

Want to join our Team? Then e-mail us and we’ll provide you with a fundraising and information package that you can send to family, friends and co-workers. We’ll be holding a post-Race party for Team Members – refreshments included – to thank everyone who took part.

To sign up, please contact Ryan at staff@canilf.org.

I spent last week in Disney World with my husband, parents, 10 year old brother-in-law and of course, my two beautiful daughters. (They were over the moon. Seriously. We went on It’s a Small World three times.)

At one point, in a bathroom somewhere in the Magic Kingdom, I watched as a mother washed her hands, 10(ish) year old daughter beside her, then turned to the mirror and said, Let’s see how bad I look.

Every ounce of my body screamed Nooo!!! because those kind of statements are wrong on so many levels. We are so programmed to be critical of ourselves that we don’t see the real harm that negativity possesses.

What does that statement tell her daughter? What does that teach her about her own self worth? How does that woman’s view of herself affect her relationships?

I go to gym at my university and the private school across the street uses the facilities for their gym classes. The girls stream in, 13, 14, 15 years old and parade past the mirrors.

Ugh. My hair.
Ohmaigawd these shorts look bad!
I hate getting sweaty.

And on and on and on. I want to grab them by the shoulders and shake them because this is no way to develop your self-esteem. Minimizing yourself is not the way to achieve success!

Why do these girls speak to themselves this way? Once you see the fault in negative words and thoughts, you begin to see them everywhere. And you begin to see how utterly toxic they are.

I’m constantly watched by two pairs of eyes, and I see that in the way my girls play (like last week, when the “mommy” in the game made the dog stay outside in the muddy yard because the floors had just been mopped). They watch my actions, but they also see more than people give them credit for. I try to set a healthy example for them, we talk about food as fuel and energy. We talk about the ways to keep your body healthy (eat good food, exercise, don’t smoke). And even last week while we were away, when my 4 year old asked me if I was going to go for a run soon, I told her that we were on vacation. She looked at me puzzled and I said it was a vacation from running, too.

I read a challenge yesterday: Don’t day anything negative about anyone for three days. Then for 45 days. Then for three months.

I’m doing it. You should too. Just don’t forget that you have to include yourself in there, too.

Name: Katrina Lee (Formerly Cripps)

Run Distance: Marathon

Sponsors: Mizuno and Remedy Drug Store Co.

Coach and Hero: Nicole Stevenson

Run Group: Nic’s Angels

Favourite workouts: 1k repeats…which is 8-10 1k repeats at a quick pace with a couple of them HARD. It’s gut busting while you’re doing them…but after you feel strong! I also love my 35-38k long runs…which is a given ‘cause I’m a distance runner and “mileage junkie”.

Favourite Mizuno gear for workouts: Wave Elixir running shoes, Breath Thermo tights for winter long runs, and the Inspire shorts and the Wave Rider tee for the summer.

Favourite Mizuno gear for Racing: Elixirs and Musha flats, Jinx sport top and the Inspire shorts and Maverick split shorts.

Food Essentials: My “everything” oatmeal (as in everything, but my running shoes goes in it), Tim Horton’s coffee, and peanut butter…on everything.

What keeps me going: My love for running and my “Angels” who are an amazing group of talented athletes.

Training Tips:

-Never ignore the little pains while training. Taking a couple days off to rest is better than letting a sore spot progress into a serious injury that could take you out for months.

-Race for motivation. Sign up for races to keep you motivated to keep running and training.

-Find a support group. Training or doing fun runs with other people makes running even more enjoyable. Plus, talking to people who understand what you physically and mentally feel through training can be very uplifting.

-Run with someone faster. Running with someone with a quicker pace than you can make your runs more challenging. By making it a goal to be able to keep up, is a fun way to get faster…and really rewarding when you finally catch them!

Best Training Advice: Be consistent with your training and be patient. They say that Rome wasn’t built in a day…well neither was speed!

My motto: Always believe that you can accomplish anything.

I am so excited about running the Mercedes Benz 10K in Oakville on May 8th! Mercedes Benz has been kind and gracious enough to agree to not only sponsor me to run the race but they will be picking me up at my home on the morning of the race in a …..you guessed it….Mercedes Benz ! How cool is that?!

THAT is totally cool!  I think that they really must care about their people and their runners as they want me to arrive refreshed and unhasselled at the starting line so  that I can run my very fastest time ever in a 10K! Actually, I have never run a 10K before (silly me …I started with the longer distances first!…LOL) and I am looking forward to seeing the turnout of the crowd and the course too!

THANKS SO MUCH to MERCEDES BENZ for all of their support!!

I REALLY appreciate it!