5 More Days!

My last run before race day. I needed to run 6 miles one more time prior to the race, so I took on "The Bridge" one last time. For those of you that have no idea what I'm talking about, see the March 31st post entitled "Milestones & Measurements." This running thing has been an incredible progress monitor. In January, I could barely run a mile. At the beginning of Feburary, I made it a mile and half. February 14th was my first training day for the triathlon and by the end of the month, I was running between 2 to 2-1/2 miles. March rolled around and I turned a year older -35. I could run 3 miles at the beginning but it hurt terribly. I even cried during a training one Saturday when we were focusing combining running and sprinting. That was one of the days I would have quit had I not already received so many generous donations encouraging me and supporting Community Partners of Dallas from many friends & family members. At the end of March I ran 4 miles and thought I was going to die when I finished. I was breathing so hard and almost puked right at the end of the bridge. Last month, I was accomplishing four to five miles and doing alot of hill training. Up the hill and back down the hill. Up the hill again and back down. It was awful. On top of this, April was also the month these fun things called "double bricks" were incorporated into our training schedule, which is where you get the fun task of a two hour workout that combines swimming and running or bike riding and running. This last month, I've consistently run between five and half miles to finally the big 6-1/2! I actually don't feel terrible when I'm finished - (other than all the blisters on my feet.) I really have this great sense of accomplishment. I'm still amazed that I've gone from couch potato to triathlete. This just goes to show you, if I made the decision to this with these results in a little over 3 months, there are alot of you that could take this on an accomplish it too. Many of you have consistently told me what an inspiration I have been. If this is true, I hope I've inspired you to do something that makes you a better person inside(physical fitness & mental wellnes) and outside(taking the time to help the less fortunate, and neglected.) What's the worst that could happen by taking on a personal challenge? If you don't succeed the first few times out, try try again!

Milestones & Measurements

Well, this week is week number 7 of my training and it really must be a lucky week because things are "shaping up." I wish I was referring to the shape of my body, but I think I'm actually gaining weight. I was hoping I would somehow manage to trim down through all of this but I'm not loving the way my jeans are fitting and I'm not loving who's looking back at me in the mirror. Oh well, I'm digressing. Actually, I have accomplished some milestones over the past weeks and in my mind (we all now how that works) these are major accomplishments. The first big milestone was about two weeks ago. I made it through an hour of spin class and moved to the treadmill where I jogged 3.5 miles. That was two hours of me being in constant physical motion! This gave me a glimmer of hope that I might actually be able to ride a bicycle for 25 miles and somehow manage to immediately complete a 6.2 mile run. Second milestone - get ready for this one - I was able to change clothes in the actual locker room at the gym! This was a major change because I had been cramming into the bathroom stall to go from gym clothes to swim suit or vice-versa. When you factor in having to shower before & after getting into the pool, that is an awful lot of time doing these necessary wardrobe changes while hiding out in the stalls. I personally just don't like naked. I don't want to see myself naked, I don't want to see other people naked and I especially don't want other people to see me naked. I mean, seriously, I'm already dealing with wearing a Speedo and a swim cap in public. It is just not that easy to squeeze into and out of all that tight spandex these workout wardrobes are made of. These outfits are indeed designed to keep everything in place & not jiggling around! So, about a week ago I gave in and just stripped down & re-dressed with all the other work out divas. My heart rate goes up every time I have to disrobe, but I'm painfully dealing. The biggest milestone I accomplished was on Sunday. I conquered the "bridge." There is a 2 mile bridge that runs between Rockwall & Rowlett. (Yes, I photographed the actual bridge. Doesn't it look daunting! I felt you would be more impressed with my story if you had a visual.) I tried to run this bridge once shortly after I began my training and I made it about a mile panting and walking along the way, so I've had this huge hang-up about it. The one thing I know for sure is that I can definitely run 3.5 miles, so what's another half mile? I actually made it all the way across and back without stopping! I realized that thinking I could not run that distance without stopping was all in my head. I stayed focused on the different training techniques people explained to me, but the best advice so far has come from my friend, Jenny. Jenny ran a half marathon for the first time in her life in 2003 and raised money for leukemia & lymphoma while doing it. She told me at one point in her training she went and visited some of the children with cancer undergoing chemo treatments. She said it helped her keep moving when she felt pain or got tired while running by reminding her if those kids can go through chemo, she could go the distance. She also told me to use my run time as God time. So I was very focused and positive on Sunday. I did feel quite a bit of pain the last mile, but I thought about what child abuse victims endure and kept running. I also focused on everything good around me, all my blessings and the many things I am thankful for. It was a gorgeous day! People were water skiing and the boaters would wave at me & honk their horns. This coupled with all the constant stream of Harley riders going down the road, waving & revving their engines was very motivational. I did a lot of "waving my hands in the air like I just didn't care and of course shouting whoo-hoo at the same time!" I'm now going to use the bridge to measure my progress. If I can run it twice without stopping, (that's 8 total miles for the math challenged) then I'll know I can definitely make it through the running portion. I'll keep you updated on my progress throughout April. For the first time, I can tell you I am truly focused and really driven to succeed with this endeavor. Did you know that Community Partners of Dallas has four annual drives? Last year, the Back to School Drive stuffed 2,421 backpacks and 2,735 pieces of school uniforms were distributed. The Winter Coat Drive distributed coats to more than 1,060 children. The Holiday Toy Drive distributed two or more toys to 5,693 kiddos and the Easter Basket Drive provided Easter baskets to over 1,700 children in Dallas County. The CPD staff and the members in The Partnership are focused to keep this good work going and of course, growing. You can be a part of all our efforts by clicking on my donation link on the left and making a generous tax deductible donation. Focusing on how much you should give? Don't drive yourself crazy with numbers. Just donate $100 for simple accounting and always remember, "If at first you don't succeed, try try again!"

Reality Check!

Well, reality has completely set in. I realized what I've committed to doing is so far beyond any level of athleticism I may possess that it's laughable. I'm training for the "Olympic" distance triathlon. The word "Olympic" should have been my first red flag especially since it is synonymous with world-class athletes. What this boils down to is I will be swimming for 1 mile, biking for 25 miles and running for 6.2 miles in that order. Through my rigorous training, I've determined I'm approximately a little less than the halfway point on all three of the activities. It takes me an hour on any one of the three activities just to make it midway. World class athlete I definitely am not. Terrible at math I definitely am. I keep calculating how long I will actually be competing in the race. At the rate I'm going it could take me 6 hours to finish it! Hopefully my math is off - way off. So I'm turning my thoughts from this little "mini crisis" I'm mulling around in my tiara adorned head to something much more positive. Did you know that Community Partners of Dallas has a program called Kids in Crisis? This program provides emergency funds for transportation, housing, enrichment activities, clothing, therapy and medical expenses for children in relative care or in their own homes. Kids in Crisis serves more than 5,400 of Dallas County's abused and neglected children annually. Now I can do that math and the reality of it is Community Partners is making a huge impact in the lives of a lot of kiddos. Speaking of checks, this is a really good time to write one. Do some simple math like $1.00 for each mile I will complete. This equals $32.20 for those math challenged individuals like myself! Always Remember - If at first you don't succeed, try try again!