Gratitude

I've been thinking a lot about gratitude lately.  Consciously thinking every day about what I am grateful for.  I try to ask the kids each day about what they are grateful for - often it ends up being "Rice Krispie treats" or "New Legos", but every once in awhile sprinkled in there are "warm mittens" or "nice teachers".  Even though I don't like to declare a New Year's Resolution, I am going to have greater resolve this year to ensure that our lives are filled with more gratitude.  Today, the thermometer is hovering around 0 degrees F.....easy one - grateful that we have a warm, comfortable home.  That led to a conversation of the hundreds of thousands of people that don't have a warm place to stay on days like today.  Gratitude brings out the positives in your life - makes it really hard to focus on the negatives with thoughts of gratitude bringing everything into perspective.

So, that being said, I feel like I have to start the New Year by making up some lost gratitude ground for the people around me....

I'm grateful for training partners like Gina - who answered the call to do a hill repeat workout that I described to her beforehand as being "probably less than an hour" that turned into brutal interval training run on really steep hills for 90 minutes....she hangs tough regardless of the workouts...even the surprise ones.  Grateful that we've been learning the sport of triathlon on about the same timeline and that she is an amazing athlete with a really kind spirit.

For my friend Bob with whom long chats during long runs make the time pass by quickly, thankful for his jelly beans and favorite post-run (adult) recovery beverage.....and grateful that he also puts up with my speed workouts on occasion.  Grateful that he gets me onto "the roads less traveled" whenever we can connect.

I'm grateful for Coach Eric who stays focused on my goals, doesn't let me whine (too much), and keeps things in perspective for me - even though that sometimes means pointing out my age and warning me against comparing myself to younger competitors....just to be clear - I'm not yet grateful for those comments - only the perspective :)

I'm grateful for my husband who helps me fit training in where I can - even though it means hearing me bump around early in the morning as I head out for an early AM workout, or waiting for me to come to bed at midnight after a late night workout in the basement.

I'm grateful for my kids who have taught me tons about myself as I teach them about navigating life.  For the motivation they provide me to be a better mom and a better person.  Obviously, I'm grateful that they are healthy - but equally grateful that they are learning about being healthy and understanding that much of "health" is within our control.  I am grateful that, at relatively young ages, they are becoming skilled in two "life sports" on which they can rely into adulthood - swimming and tae kwon do.  I'm grateful that they enjoy competing and working to be the best they can be.  I'm grateful that, even though they sometimes have to do their homework sitting on the floor next to me while I'm on my bike trainer or have to wait for me on the pool deck while I finish a workout, they accept it as part of our lifestyle and rarely complain....unless, of course, they don't get enough TV/computer game time to balance it out!  And, as most moms will confess, there are some days that I'm most grateful that my active kids also enjoy their screen time.  Everyone benefits from a little electronic downtime now and then :)

As we hit the ground running into 2014, my hope for all of us is that we can maintain this attitude of gratitude......could be my new mantra, but more to come on that in a future post!

The End of a Season

The end of a season

The official end to my 3^rd season as a triathlete – milestones like this are bittersweet.  I never enjoy hallmarks of the passage of time – as time and life seem to be flying by at breakneck paces.  It is, however, a great time to sit back, even if just for a minute and reflect on accomplishments.   I’m proud to say that I have worked really hard to make it to where I am in my level of fitness.  I had set several goals at the onset of 2013 that I have been able to check off one by one while staying healthy.

2013 Goals

·         To follow a structured, efficient training program 6 days/week for an average total workout time of 6-7 hours/week.  I have been able to sustain this commitment and it’s one of the main reasons for my successes this year.  I have a great coach who has designed training blocks month after month that have built upon my strengths and addressed some of my weaknesses.  I still have a lot of work to do and a lot to learn, but I feel good about the foundation I have.

·         To become comfortable riding/handling my new tri bike and improve my average sprint tri race pace to at least 20.0 mph.  I have proven both that you can buy speed AND that one’s engine is just as important as one’s equipment.  I became much more competitive on the bike this year and, although it’s still my weakest event, I am now towards the head of the pack instead of the middle during this leg of the race.

·         To participate in the USAT Age Group sprint tri nationals in Milwaukee and qualify for a spot on Team USA for the 2014 ITU World Championships.   Pleased to report that I checked this off the list in August – headed to Edmonton, Canada in 2014!

·         To complete an Olympic distance triathlon.  I did the Rev3 Half Full Olympic triathlon in Columbia, MD just two weeks ago.  It’s a little less than twice the distance of a sprint tri – it was a beautiful course that can be described in two words – very hilly.  The weather was perfect and I really felt like I had a good race and really enjoyed it (as much as you can enjoy swimming 0.9 miles, biking 25 miles, and running 6.2 miles as fast as you can) – I finished in 2:38:21 and came in 1^st in my age group and 5^th overall female.  It was a great way to finish the season and prove to myself that even though I have only been able to train for the shortest triathlon distances, I have the ability to sustain the effort over longer periods of time…..thinking about adding a few of these distances to the schedule for next year now!

I’m looking forward to setting new goals for 2014.  I need to shave at least another 5 minutes off of my sprint tri time to compete with the “big dogs” next year.  There are some really fast 40-something Mommas out there – at Nationals, my age group was one of the most competitive and fastest on the course that day.  It’s exciting and a little intimidating, but, most of all, it’s very motivating to work harder and smarter to step up to the next level.  Wish me luck!