Well... I must say that San Diego has been good for my health. It is the sunny weather, it just makes you want to get out and do something. Or in my case run somewhere!

The past few weeks have been me testing the half-marathon waters. Since Charlie is back in school I just have the twins with me and can push the jogging stroller along as I run. This past Monday I got up to 7.5 miles (granted it took me 1 hr 29 minutes I was proud to go the distance pushing the two little chunkers! I will take just under 12 minute miles with those two and the distance. I felt like queen of the world afterwards and other than mildly creaky knees life has been good! I plan to do it again Friday.

Every Friday I run with some friends from the Chula Vista East Mom's group on the Silver Strand in Coronado. I will post my route soon. It is such a beautiful and relaxing run!

I am going to post two pictures,the left one from when I just before I moved here and right one from last weekend. While I haven't lost a ton of weight I think that I am getting in much better shape!

I am the champion of the world!

Alright, so not really, but I did complete my first Tri this past Sunday and I was so happy I about cried. I know, it sounds silly but the pride and satisfaction in completing the whole thing had me brimming. What now? I want to do another, definately before the end of the Summer. I wish they weren't so darn expensive!

So about the tri- They say you never forget your first and I think that they are right.

We woke up and left the house just after 5 am to begin our drive to Mission Bay up by Seaworld in San Diego. Once we got there the parking lot was already a buzz with all of the athletes unloading their bikes and getting their gear situated. There were a ton of people all ready to hit the water, bike and run. My wonderful husband put together my bike and helped get all of the kids unloaded (whom he actually sat with the entire tri carting them from transition to transition.) I carted my things off to the transition area where I racked my bike and laid out my gear in the same ceremonious manner that the other triathletes did. I laid out the towel, the different pairs of shoes (cycling and running) tossed some GU gel (AMAZING STUFF!) in each pair and my change of clothing was carefully set out for maximum convenience.

After engaging in this ritual I went on to be "body marked" it is exactly what it sounds like, they take a giant permanent marker and write on your person. The teenage girl wrote my number (901) on my arm and a T for triathlon and age on my left calf. At least if I drowned I'd be identifiable right? I rejoined my family and waited until it got closer to my wave start (7:45am) to hop into my wetsuit. As the time neared I got changed and waited near the water with my family. I swear I thought I would either vomit or wet myself with how anxious I was. It didn't help that I was in my wetsuit, where despite what my husband says I feel it is inappropriate to pee! Somehow just knowing that you can't go makes you need to go all that much more.

When the wave before mine started their swim we treaded out 50 ft in front of the boat ramp to tread water for 5 minutes while we waited for our start. When it came we were off. There was a random guy in the mix of us women who started with the wrong group... still wonder what happened to him. The kicking and movements were insane. I didn't fight too much to get through the crowd since they would likely be fighting to pass me in a few minutes anyhow. Someone told me that they had been practicing with their sister swimming in front of and next to her... I told her to have her kick in her face... a lot. If I hadn't been under water with the slightest bit of visibility I am pretty sure I would have got a bloody nose and/or black eye.

I was one of the slowest swimmers but from someone who started the year barely being able to do 50m without stopping and was scared to put her face in the water I think I did pretty damn good. I didn't even have to flip over to my backstroke (this was to be my fallback stroke if I freaked out, got tired, took in too much water etc) I freestyled the whole 1/4 mile and was stoked that I wasn't the last swimmer in.

The ride was nice and leisurely which is perhaps why I was one of the slower riders in my division. I decided starting this that my goal was to finish with a smile and damnit it was not worth it to me to hurt myself or tire myself out before the run. The run was the one thing I could do easily prior to this event and I'd be damned if I was going to walk any of it. So I probably was a little too relaxed on the bike (not to say I didn't exert myself). Pulling in I changed again into run appropriate attire and began my 5k. I kept a steady 11 minute mile which wasn't great but could have been a lot worse after the whole biking and swimming bit.

During the run I came across Paula, a woman who had teenagers, was a divorcee, and was doing her first tri. She was not as strong of a runner but I think that it helped that I was there to pace her (with my forerunner of course) She finished not long after me (she didn't sprint the end) and I was glad to see the smile on her face. Afterwards she thanked me for finishing it out with her and it made me feel good. I miss the camaradarie amid runners/bikers etc in the South. You know, that weird place where we nod, wave, and sometimes emit a breathless "hello" to one another? To be honest, I missed Claire, my running buddy, my half-marathoner (that's right, she finished her half-marathon last month... WOOHOO!)

I sprinted across the finish line and the day was great, I was so appreciative of my supportive husband and family. The girls were there to give me a high five and cheer me on at each transition... I love my family.

So what is next... another tri... and I think I am going to start training for a half-marathon of my own!

WOOHOOO!!!!!

So, there you have it, my first experience, how about you try a threesome too!?

"Good For You"

So in addition to frequently hearing from people how they "should be" getting out there... I also get a lot of "Good for you!"s from everyone from a saracastic teenager to an incredibly genuine little old lady. While I try to take it in stride somehow my body doesn't always agree that it is "good for me" lol... usually halfway into my run, although today I kept it exciting by mixing my running surfaces up a little bit. I ran 1 mile on the road, half a mile on the beach, another half a mile on the road, a mile on the Estuary trails, and another half a mile of road work. It was so relaxing and unfortunately I had to stop so I could cook dinner for the fam before they starved to death! Tonight I felt like I could have kept going forever. I think I am going to make tomorrow a 5-miler. Speaking of racking up the miles I am uber proud of my girl Claire. I got her started running last fall and she is training for her first half-marathon and she has passed the 6 mile mark which is AWESOME. She was talking about bumping it up to seven. I know her half is coming up and I pray that she doesn't over do it training and hurt something. Even miles away I think I am her biggest cheerleader (I should call her more to tell her!)

So I haven't Wii-fitted for almost 2 weeks and I need to get back on the board. It is amazing how much nicer it is to me than my husband who is much more fit. If he gains about the Wii Fit asks him why- has he been overeating, has he been eating after 9, not exercising etc... with me it just explains that water weight can fluxuate X amount etc... much nicer to me. It must know that I am an overweight Mom of four who would likely throw the wii fit out of the window if it asked me why I gained .5 lbs

Well TTFN, hopefully everyone's feet are still trodding and those of you who started out the year with running as your resolution have fallen in love with it!

"I need to start doing that"

I can't even count the number of times that someone has said this while seeing me running out on the side of the road. Usually they are taking out the trash, or coming in from the car, but they give me a semi-guilty look and say something to the tune of "That's what I should be doing". One day, I am going to respond "Then why don't you?"



With the exception of the few weeks we were moving I make it a point to get out and jog, not just for my health, but because I am more at peace when I do. I am able to tune out the world, listen to my 90s alternative (oh yes, I am a fan) and just relax. Getting back into it after my brief separation was hard... I felt so out of shape when I wanted to quit after just two miles and I felt really awful for letting my running slip over the move. The thing is, I wasn't angry because I had gained weight or a dress size... I didn't gain a single pound over the move... My anger was over the labored breath and tired muscles, the pains that separate me from the relaxation of my daily run. When my breathing gets in the way of my belting out "Let Her Cry" or "Roll to Me" I get angry. Don't get me wrong, I am not fast, never have been, but I can go for miles. I was working on speed prior to our move and now I will have to get back into that practice. Speeding it up little by little.



I have a couple of goals for this year... no, they aren't resolutions- have you seen the failure rates on those? My first goal is to compete in a triathlon. My husband got me a book that I have really enjoyed reading so far. Your First Triathlon is really neat, it is a very straightforward approach and Joe Friel is really good about breaking down what you need and don't need for the sport as well as things you need to do as well as things that you can forgo. He also got me a book on swimming but I haven't really got into that yet... can we tell which leg will NOT be my favorite? My goal for my first tri is to simply finish-with a smile.

Goal number 2, a less thrilling half-marathon. I would like to be able to jog the whole thing... that might be a toughie, but at least 10 of the 13.1 miles... should be doable right? Hope so. I will let you know how that one goes!

In the meantime I am trying to familiarize myself with the area and I just found out today that I really have to make an effort to develop new friendships, all of our friends from Charleston, SC have been stationed elsewhere including Michelle... one of my nearest and dearest. My only hope is that in a year when Joe finally finishes Prototype he brings Claire home so that I can have her nearby to run with! I got Claire running with me in Charleston and over the past few months she has gotten pretty good. She ran her first 5k with me in October and she has really kept with it, I am so proud of her! She is more ambitious than I am, hoping to accomplish her first half-marathon this Spring- GO CLAIRE!!!!

Alright- I am off to relax watching some Grey's and do some reading for school! Happy feet everyone!