The offseason is that time of the year that is associated with being lazy, putting on a few pounds,  and carrying on with your old life before triathlon took over the schedule. My offseason began full swing after the Oilmantriathlon as I boarded a plane to head to Boulder, CO. I was lucky enough to have Tru Tri send me to Retul for my bike fit certification, and my friend Kelly decided to join me for a mini-vacay. Guidelines from the coach were to: *** dont workout for a week and *** literally dont work out. First thing I did that was "off-season" related was in the airport. 1) I ordered myself a huge burger, sweet potato fries and milkshake. And Yes, I ate it all. 2) I slept in.... In my huge king size hotel room. I woke up and walked (not ran!) around town, found the best coffee shop (Oxo) and grabbed a bagel and creamcheese (Creamcheese!!) from Moes bagels. 3) I was off to class for the next 3 days, which was more of a holiday with people who love what I love then it really was work. We learned all about bike fits and the process and I loved every step of it!! I am now Retul certified, so if you need a bike fit, hit me up! A little on the Boulder hotspots: First and foremost, Boulder is absolutely beautiful and I can see why so many Pros train here.

The first night the Retul instructors took us toSherpas, Indian cuisine and some of Kellys friends joined us so it was really fun. Dont forget to order extra naan! The second night Kelly and I went to Zologrill, and I can say that this was absolutely the best meal I have eaten in a long time. It may have been the 2 happy hour drinks in my system but I think I know food pretty well and this was delicious. We ordered dessert to go (banana cream pie), did some shopping and then ate dessert in bed. When we awoke there was cookie crumbs all over the bed and a piece stuck to my head. Haha Wednesday morning we woke up and ran a little bit (I HAD TO, COME ON!!). We ran up the "Boulder, Boulder" hill and I could really feel the pressure in my chest. My legs seemed find, but you could definitely feel the altitude. Then we rented bikes and biked to Boom Yogurt, The famous Triathlete, Matty Reeds yogurt bar. The last night some of my old Penn State and A&M friends in the area met up and we went to the West End Tavern, in which I proceeded to order macaroni and cheese with pork bbq on top. Yum. Seriously, If I wanted to eat it, I was going to eat it...This was Offseason! A few more pubs and we were back in our hotel waking up to our 3am shuttle back to the airport. Dangit I dont want to leave! Once back to reality in Houston, TX, I worked a little, continued to stuff my face, and still didnt work out. I really didnt even think about working out. Saturday morning I awoke with this idea that I wanted to run so I headed out for an hour easy. Even my spandex were tight (eek!), and I knew it wasnt going to be pretty. Yes, You really ARE what you eat. Enough said... This week, though I am still on "off-season", it has been a nice change of pace. I decided to get back into the swing of things by doing atleast one workout a day (usually just runs). Its kind of weird coming home from work and not going to do another workout. BUT, having a few extra hours to lounge, rather then get on my bike or rush off to the pool have been wonderful. I stayed out late a few nights, and slept in most mornings. Enjoyed numerous cups of coffee, magazines,friends and just the beautiful joys that LIFE gives us. You need to take a break sometimes, its good for the soul! I added a massage and a pedicure, and before you know it I am starting to get back into the excitement of actually "wanting" to train. The last step of offseason stems from the first few days off, when you get to reflect and realize the things you want to work on for next year. Some of these things have included: 4) Securing/finalizing sponsors and my R2R (Blog post to come :D) 5) Strength and Yoga...Need more of this to prevent injury! 6) Swim analysis (Thanks to new swim coach Tim Flloyd) I Found out that my head pops up just slightly and it creates the littlest drag in my hips. I also inset my hand with a slight turn, so we really worked on these things with drill after drill after drill. Upon correction I will be swimming much faster! 7) Changing up my bike fit based on what I learned in Retul ...Who knew saddles can play a HUGE factor in a bike fit!? I found out my hip angle was not open enough and this could actually act as a limiting factor in my running. Consequently, my runs this year have been off...So I am excited to see how this change will help. I have decided to pass on buying a new bike for next year and will just make a couple upgrades to my current Slice. I also found out at Retul, by using the Muve- bike, that my current bike frame (stack/reach) is actually the best for me. So much for that p3...! If you dont know what the Muve bike is, look it up..SO cool. 8) Nutrition and RMR analysis. ( with Chase Banks -Cool stuff in the In-Body 520 analyzer) I was really interested in finding out what my RMR is because I am always, Always! hungry. A few tweaks to my diet and I should hopefully be on top of my game. (Yes, I may be little and petite, but I do have some bad habits to break). One more week of off season and I am sure my turkey-gut will leave me fresh, and ready for action.