TODAY

Back on February 24th I ran a half marathon which I believe I told you about.  The first 8 miles of that run went really well, I even surprised myself how well things were going.  Well the last 5 miles were a different story. My right hip and foot were killing me during the 2nd half of the run and it slowed me down.  For about a month after that I eased up on my running in order to let the inflammation go away and to recover a bit.  The next couple of weeks I was traveling quite a bit for work so my other workouts became a bit limited while on the road.  I didn't have my bike to ride and not every hotel I stayed at had a pool.

During this time I got into a "Funk" and I was struggling to get out of it.  I knew it was happening but I couldn't stop it.  It wasn't that I didn't feel well and I wasn't in a bad mood I was just blase.  I knew that if I didn't put a stop to this feeling it would spiral out of control ... and I didn't have time for that!  So last night before I fell asleep I told myself that TODAY would be the first day out of the Funk, and only I could make that happen.

So when my alarm went off I got up and headed down to the Mountain Goat training run, which I was volunteering at for Team Believe.  I chalked the roads and cheered on my friends as they ran the course.  After that was over I headed to the CNY Triathlon Club's WTF for the new member orientation.  It was my first official duty as Club President ... in the air you could feel excitement and nervousness.  It is always exciting to meet new triathletes.

When that was over I headed home for lunch because I was starving and to change in order to head out for a run myself.  What a beautiful day outside!!  I had a great run and I enjoyed the warmth of the sun!!  TODAY was the first day out of my FUNK!!!  No more procrastinating ... TODAY is the day ...

To quote one of my favorite authors, and fellow Springfield, MA native, Dr. Seuss, Today is your day!  Your mountain is waiting.  So...get on your way!!

Boston Strong!

Are we there yet ...
PS: after three weeks I am down 3.5 pounds!!

86 beats a minute.

In 2001 I was training for my first triathlon and during that process I also lost 50 pounds.  So my days were spent swimming, biking and running.  One day I signed up to give blood at a local blood drive.  As you know when you go to give blood they take your blood pressure but also your pulse.  Well that morning the nurse who was working with me took my pulse several times.  She then pulled out this rules book and checked my pulse against a chart; she took my pulse again.  She then went and got her supervisor who took my pulse.  I finally asked if something was wrong?  The supervisor then asked me, "are you a runner?" I answered yes I am!  She told the nurse I was fine.  Come to find out my pulse was under 60 beats a minute, which could be a problem if you were giving blood.  However do to the fact that I was a runner and active I was fine.

On Monday, after the bomb went off at the Boston Marathon I felt helpless 300 miles away.  As a marathoner and a Massachusetts native I wanted to do something!  I needed to do something and prayers just didn't seem like enough, so I decided to go and give blood.  I arrived at the blood drive and the same process began paperwork, blood pressure and pulse.  However, this time they didn't ask if I was a runner.  My pulse was 86 beats a minute.  I was able to give blood but running (no pun intended) through my head was the fact that my pulse was high and they didn't ask if I was a runner!  Now I have given blood since 2001 but every time they take my pulse I think back to that day in 2001.

I know I wasn't there for myself and I was there to do something for others but it was a reminder that I have to do so much for myself.  Is it weird that I want to measure my activity success by my heart beats per minute?  I am scheduled to give blood again in 8 weeks!  We will see what happens.

Today I end this entry with...
BOSTON STRONG!!

Putting it all out there...

Since I made the decision not to complete the 70.3 this year I had to refocus and make something else a priority.  That priority is my weight and working at getting it lowered.  I believe by working on the weight loss it everything else will fall into place.  So of course when you are working on calories in and calories out ... sometimes things have to be given up and/or restricted ... if you notice I didn't write that dirty four letter word, D-I-E-T.  I couldn't just start another diet I had to change things in my life.  I decided to start this change by focusing first on some very simple things but keeping in mind that these simple changes can make a huge difference.  These changes are:

1. No Soda
2. No chips (chips, Doritos, Pringle's, Etc..)
3. No processed food
4. No fried food
5. Drink water
6. Get 7 -8 hours of sleep

It's not always easy but all I can do is take it one day at a time and sometimes one meal at a time.   I added the picture above because when I first read it I thought to myself that's such a simple concept.  The hard part is remembering this before you eat!

Another hard thing is putting all of this out there...

Are we there yet ...
Tri Mo Tri