I am now 27 months out from the birth of baby boy number three. It’s been a whirlwind between having a baby, caring for my other two boys (with my husband’s help of course), keeping up with family obligations, and still managing business responsibilities. My father-n-law passed away four months after Logan was born so I took on quite a bit of extra duties at that time too so I could help Mark’s mom.
I tried to start playing tennis again about six months after Logan was born but I just couldn’t find the time to do so with everything else on my plate. Weird thing about tennis, it’s better if you have someone else to play.
That requires at least a small amount of scheduling and that’s where I
hit a wall. There simply wasn’t enough time to get everything else in and try to collaborate schedules between myself and someone else, much less try to be on a team. Dang it. Something’s gotta give. Goodbye tennis, on with the grind.
Logan is growing big and strong now and all those other things, although still around, are a little more manageable. I don’t sleep well, I’ve a sum total of zero exercise in a very long time, and I honestly don’t feel all that great. Drained actually. Duh? When I thought I was having a heart attack last December, and it ended up to be gallstones, was a wake-up call. I need to take care of me. I need to be a healthier version of me. That doesn’t mean I need to be skinny. That means I want to feel better, be stronger, be healthy AND lose the 25 lbs. I’ve allowed to hitchhike on me for the past two years After all, I’ve got these three young kids to take of for many years to come! Okay, time to put me at least in the top five on the priority list. However, I can’t be a team player, I have to do it when I can do it, not when I have to schedule around someone else. Selfish I know. So be it. My schedule can change instantly.
So what kind of exercise is doable for me? I loathe working out in a gym. Truly. What’s a stronger word than loathe? Hate, detest, abhor, despise, abominate, yeah, all of those define my feelings toward working out in a gym. Free weights, machines, classes, whatever, I am not a fan. I love being outdoors. Well, except when it’s really cold. Then I strongly dislike being outdoors. Unless I’m snow skiing. Oops, ADHD kicking in. See, I told you that in the last post. Let me try to reel it back on topic…
I’ve run two half marathons in my life. Let’s be honest, “run” is a little inflated as a descriptor in this scenario. “Jog” is closer to reality. I’m not breaking any speed records. I would compare my style of “run” to that of the tortoise. Anyway, at the end of the second 13.1 mile run I decided I wasn’t a runner. I never got that endorphin high. It never brought any joy. It was like work to me. The only good part was listening to music and having that time to myself as I trained. Just to be clear, I’m not a runner. I want to work towards something and a long distance run is not on the list.
Okay, how to I get healthy and lose weight in a way that works for me? I don’t want to be in a gym, I love the outdoors, and my schedule doesn’t allow me to do a team anything. Hmmmm.
I had heard of sprint triathlons a few years ago and, believe it or not, I REMEMBERED it a couple of weeks ago. Kudos to me for memory. High five myself (basically that’s just me clapping once over my head)! So as I began to research these events I found a lot of them in Florida and just a short drive away. From what I can ascertain, these events are triathlons where participants swim, bike, and run BUT at much shorter distances than what most people know triathlons to entail. There are even some “beginner” triathlons. Now we’re talking. That’s got my name written all over it. I decide then and there this is the goal I want to put in front of me.
I am now almost two weeks into training. I’ve got two swims, two regular bike rides, one spin class, and two runs under my extra large belt. I’ve learned bike seats are not my friend.
I’m trying to do it right, train slowly, avoid injury, and ease my older, more out-of-shape-than-ever body into a healthier me. If you want to follow me on this experimental journey, for which I am cautiously optimistic, you can find me on Facebook or Twitter. Wish me luck!
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