Huge swimming progress

Last night at the team practice they filmed me to show me my form and I learned that my form is pretty good for the most part. My worst flaw was that once my arms would hit the water I was bringing them toward the middle by my head and the s curving them through the water and once I would bring them out my hands would fly out to the side. So Coach Natalie told me to keep my arms shoulder width and everything else will fall into place, sure enough it did and by the end I didn’t really want to get out of the water because I was feeling good. Once I did all my drills and intervals I swam a total of 1900 meters which was by far the most I have ever swum. To that was nice.

My parents are officially coming to the race in DC. They booked their flight and reserved the hotel so they are locked in. I am excited that they are going to go to support me and Tina in the Nations Triathlon but I am also excited for them to see DC. I think they will both really like it and my mom will spend hours in the American Indian museum and my dad will live in the Air and Space.

Things are brewing

I am planning a couple fund raising events in about 3 weeks. I have been told that I need another poker night so people who missed the last one can come play so I will be doing another one of those. I am also planning on having a bunko night at Robert's mom's house. I have some good ideas about this so stay tuned.

Lately I have been wrapping my brain around the concept of helping others and I really do believe that there is no greater feeling than doing something for someone that makes even the smallest difference in their life. I challenge everyone to figure out what they can offer and make a difference and you will get something in return that is way greater than what you offered.

Being Tired Sucks

I have been very tired this week and I know that a lot of it has to do with my training and probably my lack of proper nutrition. I had a long bike ride today with my coach Steve and we discussed a lot of things from hydration to supplying enough calories for energy. It was a very helpful ride and info session as it was just us two today on our brick. After we rode about 20 miles we ran 3 and by that time it was well into the 90s so i got a good sweat going.

I have asked my momma to help with my fund raising and she has put a jar at her work and shared what I am doing with others in he beauty salon and some of them are helping to spread the word. The first day I got $62 so that is a great start. My friend Ann Marie operates a women only gym in Edmond and she has offered to help as well so I gave her documents and a jar for her to leave at the front of the gym. I am looking for more ideas for fund raising so if you have any please let me know.

It's not about me

I was watching TV and the new Nike campaign for livestrong came on and it just reminded me that my efforts for this triathlon are not about me, it's about the people affected by blood cancers. I have been thinking a lot lately about helping others and the difference it can make. I am raising money for cancer but you don't have to raise money for cancer or be associated with a charity to do something for others. You never know what one kind gesture will do for someone. Figure out what you can offer and make a difference in someone's life.

50 miles in 4 hours

Yesterday our team practice was a bike ride in Norman for charity. The ride was called Norman Conquest, Conquer the Hills, Conquer the Heat. The best part was the fact that there wasn't any heat to deal with the bad part was that the hills were still there. If you have never been east of Norman it is extremely hilly and when you are going 46 miles on these hills it makes it even tougher.

So I met some team members in the parking lot and when it was time to head out I noticed that my front tire needed some air so I went to put air in the tire and told Stephanie and Kristy that I would catch up. When I got back to the exit of the parking lot I saw people turning left so I went left. I noticed that there wasn't anyone out in front of them but I kept going anyway since there were a few hills and thought maybe they just turned and I couldn't see them. So after I went about 2 miles and saw nobody I realized I went the wrong way and had followed the 10 mile family fun ride group. So I turned around and went back to the start. At this point I have ridden 4 miles total in the wrong direction and am probably 10 - 15 minutes behind the group.

I went back to the start and got a map and got on my way. After about 2 hours of riding alone I finally caught Stephanie and rode with her for a few miles before we hit a rest stop and that is were we found Kristy. So we all enjoyed some chatting about how badly I wanted chicken nuggets and then got on our way. At this point we were 25 miles in to the 46 mile ride, not including my 4 miles in the wrong direction. The last 20ish miles were so hard my legs were tired and just ready to not move for a while but I made it through and finished at 11:30. so I rode for 4 hours and covered 50 miles of crazy hills. I am glad I did it and can only hope that it made my legs stronger.

To put into perspective of how far 50 miles that is the same as going from 2nd Street and I-35 in Edmond to Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater.

Great Success!

I made it through gauntlet #2 and I had the same outcome as I did last week. I went swim practice tonight and swam right at 1500 meters which included drills I have learned a lot of new tricks about my swim stroke in terms of efficiency and speed. I left the pool a little before 8 and went straight to northeast Edmond to dominate 2 softball games. I love to play softball but I will be ready for the season to end next week so I can focus 100% of my efforts on the triathlon. Nonetheless i have done this two weeks in a row and we have won all 4 games.

I discovered a new band today, Owl City. They remind me a lot of The Postal Service and their lead singer Ben Gibbard's voice, but the voice also sounds like the lead singer of MAE. Its good fun electronicy type of music and only $8 on iTunes, go get it now before they get one hit and the price goes up $4.

Poker Tournament & Stuff

This Saturday I am hosting a poker tournament to help with my fundraising. $30 gets you a seat at a table, $20 goes to my fundraising and $10 goes to the pot for the winner(s). It should be a fun evening so if you are down to throw some cards like KGB in Rounders head on over to my house at 7pm this Saturday the 18th.

I rode the bike for 1 hour this morning going about 18 miles. I did a lot of intervals where I would go really hard then let up for a few minutes then go really hard a gain. I go honked at again by some guy in a gray Dodge Charger but this time I think he was actually letting me know he was there because he didn't lay on his horn it was just a few quick honks and it was well before he reached me. I gave him a fun thank you wave.

Eat Eat Eat.....I have been eating a lot more than I normally do because I noticed that my energy level is a lot lower when I don't because my body is using all the food I take in which is nice because I can pretty much eat whatever I want and still stay in shape. But I still try to eat fairly healthy.

Tonight is Gauntlet II. Like I said I rode the bike this morning, well tonight I have team swim practice at 6:30 and then I have 2 softball games at 8:30 and 9:30 I am gonna have to make sure I get away from the swim early enough to get something to eat as I know I will be starving by 8 tonight.

Being inspired

This was a long week for me with training and dealing with passing of my uncle to cancer. I took one last hit before the weekend was over today when my mom called to let me know that her brother may have cancer. Will it ever end? My uncle Roy, who also is my godfather, is a hilarious man who always finds humor in the worst of situations and I know that he will do the same in this case if in fact he is diagnosed with cancer. When my mom had her surgery last summer to remove a cancerous tumor and her kidney he brought my mom a bag of kidney beans. When he was in the hospital a few years ago after having open heart surgery I remember asking how the hospital food was and he said, "great....if you like the taste of cardboard" and I remember laughing so hard at that.

Yesterday at our team brick we actually met with the members training for a marathon. We talked about our events and one woman shared a story of a 9 year old boy suffering from Leukemia and his battle it was very touching and we all biked/ran for him. I also met a couple John and Tracy and their cute daughter. Tracy is one of the marathon coaches and John is training for the marathon in Hawaii but you wouldn't have known it since he rode his bike. I thought he was training for the triathlon with me and when we were riding side by side he said, "no...i hate running so i am riding my bike for the cardio." He was going to do the Cap Tex Tri in May but hurt his knee so he just pushed his fund raising into the Hawaii marathon. John ended up running after we rode almost 10 miles.

I learned from John that he and his wife lost their 9 year old son to Leukemia in 2007 and ever since then the have been involved with Team in Training. John's goal is to make the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society on the same level as the Susan G. Komen events. It was inspiring to hear him talk about his son and his passion for what he is doing. It helps to keep me motivated.

The Gauntlet

I decided to put myself through roughly 3 hours of athletic activity last night and am glad to say I mad it through. I had a team swim practice at OCCC at 6:30. It was a great swim and I hadn't been the last 2 times so the coaches were so excited to see my progress. We did a lot of tough drills but they were good and I got out of the pool at 7:45ish.

I then headed up I-44/I-35 to NE Edmond to play 2 softball games. I was starving and wanted to stop to get some food but couldn't. I showed up at 8:20 for our 8:30 game, just in time to write the lineup. we won the first game then won the second.

I got home at 11 and took a shower then ate a sandwich and went to sleep. I slept in today to get some extra rest and plan on running tonight. I wasn't concerned with my energy level but was just so dang hungry. I need to make sure I eat next time.

My Uncle Terry

Today was the funeral for my Uncle Terry. He passed away last Thursday, July 2nd, losing his battle with cancer. It was a very nice ceremony at the church where I grew up St. John's Catholic Church in Edmond. It was a very small beautiful service that included a full mass. Father Dan who actually knew my uncle said some funny stories about him and delivered a wonderful service. I want to thank all of my friends for the support they have shown me and my family over the last 2 weeks. It really means a lot to me.

Tonight I have a team swim at 6:30 at OCCC and then am off to play 2 softball games at 8:30 & 9:30. I am predicting that I am very tired tonight at about 10:45 or 11. I have stepped up my fundraising effort and am sending out about 70 letters to friends and family, mostly people who don't use the internet, and I am hoping to get a great response from them. I have been throwing around some ideas for fund raising opportunities and will keep you posted on what I decide to do.

I have officially made the theme song to my training and commitment to Team in Training "So Alive" by Ryan Adams, yes that is Ryan not Bryan. I feel that it represents a positive message and really fits the idea of Team in Training and supporting others and helping to do what others can't do. Here is a link to the performance on The Late Show.

Singing while I swim

So I got back into the swing of things this morning after taking 4 days off for the holiday weekend. I found myself in the pool by about 6:50am and noticed instantly they must have done something to the water because it was cloudy for an indoor pool. I swam half a mile and tried to take the advice that Tina gave me and tried to sing a song while swimming. I was only able to think of 2 songs while I swam this morning and both were songs about storms. "rock you like a hurricane" by The Scorpions and "riding the storm out" by REO Speedwagon. I couldn't remember the lyrics outside of the chorus so it didn't really help much. I will try again on Wednesday does anyone have a suggestion?

No honks just gray water

I was able to get a great swim in this morning going 1300 meters which is only 200 short of the race distance but I didn't really have a chance to attempt the extra 200 because the water slowly started to turn gray while I was swimming and it was my time to get out after the 1300 meter mark. I guess there is some kind of senior water aerobics class at 7:50 every morning and they just look at me waiting for me to get out of their pool because the second I get out the lane ropes come down and they start to move in slow motion.....I mean do their workout.