40 Days

I am giving up Coke and fast food for 4o days. Hopefully longer if I can hack it. I do mean soft drinks not just Coke, but I mostly drink Coke. So far so good. I am a week into it and am already 4lbs lighter. Been eating many more meals at home and adding lots of veggies and fiber to the diet. I am looking for clean eating recipes. So if you have any good ones that you love, please send them my way.
Also I am looking for other things to change as I progress to a get healthy lifestyle. What are things that you would change to make a big impact on your fitness and nutrition?

My New Running Buddy

In an effort to get more movement in my life I have enlisted a new running/jogging/walking buddy. He is the cutest little 3.5 year old, my son Maddox. He is a real slave driver. He loves to run and doesn't like to rest for a breather very much. Yesterday we went around the big block. He did a lot better than I thought he would and he had a great time. I thought we would just walk around the block. Oh no he wanted to run. So we jogged and walked. Then later he went to swimming lessons. He will be a triathlete for sure!

Today we decided to go farther and with a destination in mind. We went to the neighborhood park. It is only about 1.5 miles. He ran even more today and didn't want to rest. So I am hoping that we can work our way up to a 5K. 

I am so proud of my little partner and he is getting me outside and both of us moving. 

Fallen Off

Sorry I have fallen off blogging lately. I have been reading tons of blogs, but just haven't had much to write about. Exercise has been lacking lately and I need to get back in gear. Having a hard time fitting it in. I am becoming an insomniac. I stay up way to late and then don't want to get out of bed in the morning. I have been making it but not waking up in the morning to work out. Got my son in swimming lessons so that is two nights out of my week for sure that are just chock full. The other 3 I don't have an excuse for... Lets just say I need to get busy working out. I hadn't realized how long it had been since I blogged until Jill mentioned it. I have been slacking big time on the blog front. So in an effort to get back on track - Here I am!

If any of you have great suggestions on getting motivated and finding time, please let me know. Looks like I am in need of all the help I can get. 

Have a great weekend everyone! 

My turn

I thought this was such a great idea. Here is my interview. Jess had posted her own interview the other day and I asked to continue the game. Here are the interview questions that she sent to me. If you would like to be interviewed, follow the directions at the end and you can be interviewed too!

1. What is the greatest challenge about fitting training in with the rest of your life?
My biggest challenge is fitting it all in. I still struggle with this every day. Finding the time is always hard for me.

2. If you could only choose one distance to race from here on out, what would you choose and why?
The distance for me in Running would be the 5K. I am not a very good runner, but I am working on it. In Swimming I have always liked the longer distances. With Biking I just enjoy the ride so no preference.

3. If you could live anywhere, and cost of living and job availability weren't issues, where would you want to live?
Believe it or not, I am actually quite partial to where I live now. It is close enough to where I grew up and to my family. It is near a large city with lots of great things to do. It is also close to the beach. The only change I would make is to have a home to escape to when there is a hurricane. I also enjoy my job and my friends here can't be beat.

4. What's the best part about your typical day?
The best part of my day is the time I spend with my hubby and my son. There really is nothing better.

5. If you could only accomplish one thing in the rest of your life, what would it be and why?
To exercise and get healthy enough to live to see my son grow into a wonderful adult. He is the most important thing in my life and I would love nothing more than to be part of his life as long as possible.


To play along:
1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will repond by emailing you 5 questions. (I get to pick the questions)
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

My Favorite Things

Here is a little list and some more info about my favorite things in no particular order.

1. Recovery Socks - I won a pair in a random drawing from Frayed Laces. The other night as my calves and feet were killing me I thought I would try them out. They are long like old men white socks. At first I thought they may be too tight but I was wrong. Once I got them on wow they were very comfortable. Wore them all night. Woke up the next morning all better.


2. Batherapy- I found this great mineral bath salt at my local supermarket. Has a great mint fragrance and help the sore muscles.
   
3. Acupuncture- Hate needles but my knees really couldn't make it without acupuncture.


4. Foam Roller-Absolutly wonderful at rolling out the sore muscles. When I use it.


5. Orthotics- They are making a difference. I am not having as much ankle foot trouble as I have in the past.


6. Monthly massage at Massage Envy- I have always loved a good massage so about a year ago I signed up for a monthly massage. I look forward to every month as a big treat.


7. Having the Good Dr. on call- My hubby is a Chiropractor and he has magic hands. Having him around when I am truly in need is the best!

Tidbits

• Did Wednesday workout today since I didn't feel like swimming.
• Eating has been much better so far this week.
• Not looking forward to weighing in for the week in the morning.
• Workout tonight 1.25 miles jog/walk, 30 min bike random hill setting 10.3 miles. 
• Love my Recovery Socks.... AWESOME
• Batherapy Sport (mineral bath salt) also a big favorite.
• Trying to workout in the mornings not happening so far.
• Drinking my water for the day about to shower and call it a night.

Inspiration

Here is some inspiration for us all. One of my best friends growing up wrote this wonderful essay after his first triathlon. I am one of his biggest fans and am so proud of him. He has come a long way and has found a new life in the process. I hope all of you enjoy his story as much as I have.

The Experience of a Lifetime

 

I know that most first timers will say that Try Andy's Tri was a great accomplishment. It may have even been their greatest achievement. For me it was the end of a 33 year fight with obesity, and a goal unattainable just two years ago. 

At 345lbs there was no way I could have ever participated in a triathlon. After a year and a half I lost over 130 lbs and my reward was... a triathlon? What was I thinking? I mean to lose weight and be at 210 lbs was one thing but to even think I could be in such a grueling competition was just crazy.

I knew what I had to do and I felt the best place to reveal the new me was at Try Andy's Tri. I bragged that I was going to be in a triathlon. The whole time I was scared to death to even register. When I got the nerve up to I learned that you don't wait till the last minute. What was I gonna do?

Then 100 more slots opened up. YES! I jumped on it. This was my chance to prove myself and accomplish all of my worldy dreams. Ok, maybe not, but it would show how far I had come. I mean just by finishing I would be not only an athlete, but a "TRI" athlete. That's like triple as good as any regular person.

I trained hard by running six miles a day and eventually got on my trusty 13 year old bike. And by trusty I mean rusty, but it was good enough. I rode 15 miles at a time to prepare for the bike leg. With about two months till TAT I started swimming again. Wow, that was a downer when I realized that sitting in the pool for years didn't translate to a Michael Phelps like performance.

Eventually I did all three in one day to see how much it would take for me to complete the triathlon. My goal was to finish in less than an hour and a half and be in the top 50%. These goals are rather bold for a first timer, but I knew how far I had come.

October 12 I woke up and knew it was the day I had dreamed of. Leading up to the start was surreal. I kept telling myself to have fun and enjoy every moment. And that's exactly what I did. From the start I remembered what it took to get me to where I was. I jumped out of the water and sprinted to the transition area. Having never practiced transitioning I found getting socks on wet feet was a little more challenging than I had expected.

Next was the biking leg of TAT. 10 miles of scenic bike riding as fast as possible, now that's my idea of a good time. Everyone I passed or had passed me along the way I said "keep it up, uou're doing great". Riding hard I rolled back to the transition area, spaghetti legs and all, and put my bike up for the last leg of the event.

The run was my favorite. I had been running for over a year and knew that I had to go hard to meet the goals I set. At mile two I passed a guy that was younger and more athletic than me. After looking at my watch he asked what pace I was on. He was trying to keep ahead of a friend and unfortunately the friend was a better runner. Around 9 minutes was my pace so I told him I'd help out and to keep up. I said that at the bagpipes we haul it in and don't let up. Next thing I knew we were running as hard as possible. I don't even remember faces, only that I wanted to stop time and enjoy the achievement forever.

This was more than achieving a goal, it was the pinnacle of my two years of working so hard. My lifetime achievement. I ended up finishing in 1:11 which was 19 minutes better than I expected. I was 346th and that accomplished my second goal. My first triathlon was so much more than a run, bike and swim. The 16th annual Try Andy's Tri was the experience of a lifetime. Count me in every year to be a part of this great event.

Written by Josh Reno

This is the essay that's in this months edition of Runners Tri News. Pick up a copy on news stand near you... Borders or Barnes & Noble. It is the back page. 

Continued success in triathlon's Josh. You are my inspiration!