The Biggest Loser Triathlon

I have been a fan of The Biggest Loser since the first season.  I'm a sucker for the storylines.  I love Jillian screaming at the contestants.  I really, really love the finale and seeing the transformations.  I hate hearing about contestants who go back to their old habits after leaving the show. 

When I lived in Ocean City, The Biggest Loser was what motivated me to run a half marathon.  I watched a former contestant finish a half marathon after leaving the show.  (This was before they did marathons and such on the actual show.)  Anyway, I figured that if she could finish a half marathon, so could I...and I did...I finished several half marathons.

In October of 2012, I completed my first triathlon.  As Mike Stone from Princeton Sports so eloquently stated, "a sprint triathlon is a gateway drug".  Yep, I crossed that finish line after my first triathlon and immediately thought that I couldn't wait to do that again.

So this season of The Biggest Loser, the final 5 contestants were to compete in a triathlon.  When I first heard this, I wasn't sure how I felt about it.  I wasn't sure that they would give the sport of triathlon it's fair honor.  However, the more I thought about it, the more excited I got.  If The Biggest Loser could motivate me to run a half marathon, maybe it would motivate someone out there to try to complete a triathlon.

Last night was the triathlon episode.  I got my glass of wine and snuggled in to watch.  I was pretty sure that I knew who would win...and I was right.  Rachel killed it.  But what really got me was how they showed Bobby's panic in the swim.  I have felt that panic.  I watched him struggle and I knew exactly what he was feeling.  And just like me, Bobby pushed through the panic and finished the swim.  Bobby came in 5th place...out of 5 contestants.  But he danced across the finish line!  I loved that.

Bobby proved why it was so cool that The Biggest Loser did a triathlon episode.  Triathlon is a physical challenge...but it's an even bigger mental challenge.  If you can push through the pain, the panic, the doubts, you can finish.  And that in and of itself is a victory.  Congratulations to the contestants for finishing their first triathlon.  I can't wait to see if any of them take up the sport after the show is over!

How Strong I'm NOT

So a few posts ago I commented on how I was going to get a plan together to stay fit while recovering from foot surgery.  Last week I took the next step in making that plan a reality...I met with Coach Sandra.  The goal of this meeting was for her to see my current fitness level and for her to show me how to use the machines that she was going to include in my plan.  Since I'm an idiot when it comes to working out on machines, I was excited for her to show me exactly what I should be doing.

First, I have to say that she probably thinks I'm a wacko.  I was in a particularly chatty mood and I talked more than I listened.  Not a good way to start when she is supposed to be showing me how to do things!  Oops.  We got along well though and she didn't seem to be too annoyed by my constant talking.

Everything was going so well...until she started to assess my core strength and my upper body strength.  I think she was genuinely shocked at how weak I am!  At one point she handed me a weight and said that it would be easy for me.  HAHA...I struggled to do the exercise with the "easy" weight.  How embarrasing.  But she just smiled and said that we had a lot of room to improve! 

So at the end of our time together, we talked briefly about nutrition.  I have not been eating well at all lately.  She asked what I had eaten that day...it had been a pretty good day so it didn't sound too awful.  If she had asked what I had eaten the day before...totally different story.  But I know that I need to get rid of the Cokes, stop eating so much popcorn at 9 pm and incorporate more fruits and veggies into my meals.  I also need to do a better job of eating breakfast.  That has always been a struggle for me.

But one of the things that I have to commit myself completely to is a better diet.  I have put on 5 pounds from where I was when I did the half ironman.  I'm lucky that it's only been 5.  If I keep going this way when my exercising is reduced after surgery, I will pack on the pounds for sure!  I really need to focus on eating right and losing those 5 pounds PLUS the 10 pounds that I should have lost before the half.  (Yes, even with that much training, I was still overweight.)

So hopefully with Coach Sandra's fitness plan and a better effort in the way of nutrition, I will be able to survive the recovery period. And my ultimate goal is to come out of the recovery period and not miss a beat getting back into triathlon training.

Coach Karen?

I received a call yesterday from a good friend and fellow commercial real estate broker.  She volunteers for an organization that provides assistance to breast cancer patients.  Their largest annual fundraiser is a 5K walk. 

Last year they added a run component to the 5K.  They had 5 training locations around the city for people who were working to complete their first 5K run.  This year they are adding more training groups, including one in Columbia.  So my friend was calling to see if I would consider being a coach for the Columbia training group. 

I would LOVE to do this.  Helping people learn how to complete their first 5K sounds like a dream.  I'm already picturing myself at the finish line cheering on my team of runners!  Plus they would pay me!  It's not much, but definitely makes it worth my time...which would only require one hour a week on Saturday mornings.  I could totally do that.

EXCEPT...

I'm having foot surgery. 

UGH

There really isn't a way that I can train people to run unless I can run with them.  Of course we could meet at a track and I could holler at them as they ran in circles for an hour...but I don't think that would instill a love of running.  It wouldn't be fun for them or for me.  NOPE...if I can't run, I can't train.

I'm so disappointed!  I told her that if they found someone to do it this year, I would take it over next year.  But I really wanted to do it this year.  I know in my heart it's the right decision not to take on this training responsibility when I can't do it fully...but it's still so disappointing.  I really hope that I am able to do it next year.

Not a Slow Swimmer Anymore!

Last week was the first week of the new swimming session.  On the Thursday class, there are a lot of new people.  So lane 1 is so crowded that some of the lane 1 regulars had to be moved to lane 2. I've been a lane 2 regular for the last session. Pam needed to move someone from lane 2 up to lane 3 to make room for the lane 1 people.

I could see her assessing the swimmers in lane 2.  I thought for sure she would move Ron or Todd...maybe even Jill.  But no...she said "Karen, I want you to move over to lane 3."  What?  I was shocked.  She must have seen that on my face and she said "you can handle it."

So I moved over to lane 3 and meekly smiled at the other swimmers in the lane... Elliott, Trish and Sue.  I volunteered myself to go last.  During the workout, I found myself catching up to Sue.  I couldn't believe it...these are really fast swimmers!

Today was another day where lane 1 was overcrowded.  I had started my workout in lane 2.  Then
Pam came over and asked me to move to lane 3 again.  I was actually excited about moving this time, although I still volunteered to go last.

We did some drills with our fins on.  I found that I was catching Trish and was having to slow down so that I didn't run her over.  What a great feeling!  I think next Thursday I'm going to ask if I can move up in the order that we go, especially when we have fins on.  Also, during our negative split 200, I had to slow down because I had almost overtaken Elliott.  I am in lane 3 and not just keeping up...I'm definitely holding my own with these strong swimmers.

During my drive into work, I started thinking about my swimming.  For the first few months that I was going to swimming class, I was always telling everyone how slow I was.  Now I'm getting to the point where I can really see major progress.  I am in a class with some really good swimmers...and I'm steadily moving up to faster lanes and continuing to do well. 

As with everything else, my swimming capabilities are going to take a hit during my recovery from surgery.  However, my confidence will not be shaken.  I know that I will never get back into the pool and state "I'm a really slow swimmer".  While I'm not the fastest swimmer, I am also NOT a slow swimmer.  This understanding alone shows major gains from where I was a year ago.  YAY!!

The Start of a Plan

I've been very excited to get back into a training routine.  Yes, I have pain in my foot.  Yes it is going to keep me from running...BUT it does not have to keep me from doing anything! 

Swimming has been fine.  When I went to the pool on Christmas Eve (yes, I did that), it hurt to push off the wall with my foot.  But at today's class I was painfree!  I do think that the 3 weeks that I took off were very beneficial.

The bunion was putting pressure on my seisemoid bones (I still don't know how to spell that word and I'm too lazy to look it up right now...so please forgive me if I'm misspelling it.)  Anyway, since I took some time off, the irritation has gone down and now I'm just experiencing the bunion pain.  That is a much more manageable pain.

Back to my story...today's swim class was great.  I situated myself in Lane 2.  There were 4 of us in the lane and as usual, I chose to be last thinking that I didn't want to slow anyone down.  On several of the intervals I was catching up to the person in front of me.  Huge confidence builder!!  Plus even though I ate my way through the holidays, I was not feeling sluggish in the water.  I was very happy with the swim class today.

Tonight was my first Spin90 class since early December.  I was anxious about my foot, but I made it through the entire class.  It didn't hurt too badly during the class, but now that I'm sitting and relaxing, it hurts a lot.  I think I need to be cognizant of not doing too much but yet doing enough to keep my fitness level.

So my mind started working on a plan today.  Yes, that's always dangerous.  But I was thinking about the time when I'm in the boot after surgery.  I will be significantly limited in the types of activities that I will be able to do.  However, up until today, I was thinking that I wouldn't be able to do much at all and that I would have to pretty much write off those 6 weeks.  Not so!  The more I thought about it today, the more I was convinced that there will be a lot that I can do to stay in shape during that time.

I spoke briefly about this with John today.  He agreed with me and said that he would discuss it with Sandra.  I have not met her, but John said that she is a Level 1 Certified Coach.  I don't honestly know what that means, but it sounds impressive.  Hopefully between Sandra and John, I can put together a workout plan that keeps me fit and in shape so that I don't lose much during my time in the boot.

Call me crazy, but I think I have the start of a plan!

Changing My Mind...Again

My foot is feeling better.  I think that since I've stopped doing anything that puts pressure on my foot, that the irritation in my seisamoid bones has been alleviated.  So of course, what's the first thing I want to do?  Start putting pressure on it again!  (I'm such a genius)

Seriously though, I have decided that I am going to start back at Spin90 until the surgery.  It's not running so I won't be pounding on the foot, but it's something athletic.  I can feel my fitness slipping away every day that my lazy butt sits on the sofa.  I will be losing a lot while I'm in the boot...I don't want to lose more prior to the surgery.

So look out John...I'm coming back!  I have to admit that I am seriously excited about getting back on the bike.  Yes, I realize there must be something wrong with me...