Thursday, January 9, 2014

2014 Starting off Strong

With January comes along many changes for most people...changes which they forget about by the Super Bowl. Not the case for me. January marks the beginning of IRONMAN WISCONSIN training.  

Once again, I have a great group of people from T3 working toward their goals. Not all of them are doing Wisconsin. Some of them are doing Louisville, Lake Placid, or even just  for some long bike rides. The best part is just getting together to bear down through a workout. 



Our group trainer rides are grueling. Most of the workouts are based on an indoor training program from Beginning Triathlete. Last week someone brought a SUFFERFEST video for us to review. All I can say is I hated it.....and yet loved it. It was quite the tough ride.


The biggest changes for me come from a nutrition point of view. My absolute favorite candy in the world is Hot Tamales. While I am diabetic, I did use them during my long runs or rides last year as a special treat to bring some carbs into my body. My biggest weakness though is movie theatre popcorn. I know. I know. It's horrible for me, but that smell is intoxicating and my husband butters and salts it ohhhh so well.

As of January 2nd,  I gave it all up. I've entered into a nutrition challenge with some friends where we have all agreed to eliminiate soda, alcohol and unnecessary carbs. Bye bye Diet Pepsi. Bye bye popcorn. I thought it would be a challenge but we went to a movie last Friday and it realy wasn't as bad as I had made it out to be. 

Starting 2014 off strong....slowly ramping up working toward endurance distances. Who needs to be fast when you have 17 hours to complete your goal? 

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Hello 2014

Goodbye 2013!! Or shall I say good riddance? Don't get me wrong. 2013 wasn't a horrible year. It just didn't leave a very positive impression. 

Highlights of the year? 
- PR at the Indy Half Marathon
- Completing my first marathon 
- Disney Wine & Dine Weekend
- Getting certified in BODYCOMBAT and as a GRIT Coach

Lowlights of the year? 
- Getting 4th place in the Tremont Tri by .23 seconds
- Going on Metformin

As I usher in 2014, I can honestly say I got this. My exercise plan is ready to be executed. I'll still teach 8-10 classes per week as well as starting to train for Ironman Wisconsin. My new tri bike is locked and loaded, ready to hit the trainer. I can only hope that my Runner's Knee will not be as aggravating once I start running again in the next few days. 
So what are my goals for 2014?
It all comes down to food. NUTRITION. Properly fueling my body. For January, my goals are:
- No soda or alcohol 
- 64 oz of water each day
- No carbs after 6 pm
- Log my food daily in MyFitnessPal
- Planning and preparing 4 dinners / week for myself as well as my entire family 

In order to motivate myself to stick to this fabulous plan, I have entered into a friendly little competition with some friends. We will log points in a Google doc spreadsheet, smack talk and cajole each other to hitting our goals.

My end goal? Ironman Wisconsin on September 7, 2014. My intermediate goal? Get back to IMLOU weight.

Day 1 of 2014 is complete. Here's to a much improved year and great things which are yet to come.