The Bare Minimum

Bending over backwards

The last couple of weeks have been a battle to stick to my training while still nursing the back injury I sustained when my carpark gate attacked me. Work and cycling seem to aggravate my back the most, so I have found that I have only been able to complete the key sessions for my training plan. This does not worry me too much as I am still getting through swimming, the shorter run sessions and have done some of the cycling although I am taking it very easy. I have had the back assessed, and it is a muscular strain that will recover as long as I look after it

Im frustrated because I know that I cannot continue for too long on this bare minimum schedule. I will need to be back at full training capacity very soon so that I can set myself up for the longer training sessions that will gradually build up heading towards half ironman distance training. I am trying to remain positive, even as I sit here in bed today, bedridden with a nasty bout of tonsillitis to add to the fun. This is going to prevent me from doing ANY training for the next few days to a week I would imagine.

Busy, busy, busy

I am also insanely busy at the moment with packing things into boxes at home and preparing where my stuff will be moved to in the coming weeks. Soon we will be moving into my boyfriend's family home, back into suburbia, so we have been working pretty hard to clean up the spaces at both places. Despite moving numerous times I am always amazed at how much stuff I have kept that I don't seem to use. I am trying to be ruthless and cull some of this stuff. This has been taking up alot of our time and although you get abit of a work out lifting and moving things around, it still does not compare to a decent gym session.

   My boyfriend hard at work...

Camping

Yesterday the removalists came to move our bigger furniture. It was the only free day that we had between now and the end of the lease in a couple of weeks. We are camping out with the smaller stuff for the next couple of weeks, using camping chairs and camp table as our 'dining' area and little mattresses on the floor for our 'bedroom' upstairs. The washing will be done at the laundromat if we need and our biggest challenge is getting by without a fridge for the next week or so. The esky will see us through some of it. So it is really like camping, except in a townhouse..

 Our 'campsite'.. My cat Lucy is included of course :)

     Makeshift dining room..

From ANZAC day elation to tonsilitis hell..

As I mentioned earlier I have also been struck down over the weekend with severe tonsillitis. Anyone who has had tonsillitis knows how it can flatten you. I have not been this unwell for years. I had been feeling not quite right on Friday and by Sunday I was in a terrible way. ANZAC day festivities were brilliant on Friday. I watched my dad march in the city in the morning and attended our annual 8th devision, 4th anti-tank ANZAC day service at the usual pub in North Melbourne for my grandpa's second world war veteran mates and their families. There are 9 remaining veterans alive for Pa's regiment, and 2 were able to attend the march on Friday. Although these numbers are dwindling, the turn out from the remaining families remains strong. It is a always a very good time, very moving too.

   My dad proudly marches for his dad

As an avid Collingwood supporter, the ANZAC day footy match is always a highlight. The minute silence amongst 92,000 people at the MCG prior to the game is absolutely incredible and never fails to give me goosebumps. I am fortunate that as a full Collingwood member, I have a seat at both home and away games so I am always guaranteed a ticket/seat to this game and each game of the season. It was a great game this year and we came away with the win this time, so I was extra happy on what is always a great day.

    Powerful pre-game anzac tribute

Although I had planned to head out in celebration with a couple of friends from the footy, I was not feeling too crash hot so I went straight home instead. Good decision. By Saturday afternoon I was rocking a very sore throat. Saturday night I was hoping that the sore throat was a precursor for a cold/flu type virus and would disappear overnight and become a more manageable cold. Nope. When I woke up early Sunday morning I felt like I had been hit by a truck and my throat was more sore than ever and closed over with swollen tonsils that made breathing and swallowing difficult and painful. I already have very large tonsils anyway, that are scarred from previous bouts of tonsillitis as a teenager. I probably should have had them taken out in my early twenties, yet when I was told that the next time I got tonsillitis they would have to come out I then did not have it again for the next decade.

My boyfriend took me to the doctor as I was too sick to even contemplate driving. We laughed at how the doctor reacted by reeling back when he looked in my throat, and I jumped at his suggestion to have an injection as well as the prescribed antibiotics to try to get some improvement more quickly in a particularly nasty case of tonsillitis. With a temperature of 38.9, I was feeling hot and then cold changes every 30 seconds, standing up made me feel like I was going to pass out, and I needed to stand for a little bit as my butt was sore from the injection in the first hour following the jab. Not fun times. I got as many liquids in as I could, solid food has been impossible. 

 My man got me a much appreciated throat soothing slurpee

This morning I am not quite as sore however I still feel terrible. I am forced on bedrest for at least the next couple of days. Talking is difficult so lucky I have this blog to feel like I'm talking to someone :) I have learnt my lesson in the past though and with a body so run down that it is now stopping me in my tracks, I am forced to listen to it and take some time out to rest and recuperate.

Back to Back

Running on empty

Since the falling gate incident last Wednesday, I have established that the main two offending injuries sustained include my right side lower back and my right shoulder. It appears that I managed to avoid further bruising largely by pushing upwards with my right arm and leg to reduce the impact from the gate and in doing so caused some muscle strain in these areas.

The pain from these put me out of action from training Thursday - Saturday this week. I have been forced to allow some rest and repair. Today, I managed to head out for a run with some trepidation. It turns out that I actually found it not too difficult to complete following a decent warm up. Mercifully only 4km was required of me today and the lower back held up to the impact of running on the softer running tracks. I only seemed to feel it when crossing over patches of concrete.

The shoulder is also loosening up, which is a vast improvement from Thursday morning when I was unsure how I would handle a scalpel blade handle at work let alone get through a training session. Thankfully today I have noticed a huge improvement and am hoping to complete a swim training session tomorrow night.

Self-talk

Pushed to the end of my emotional rope this week more than an average week, I found it difficult to combat niggling negative thoughts and self-talk. Therefore his week enabled me an opportunity to do some valuable mental training. On Thursday and Friday, as I was struggling to get myself to and through work, unable to train, and still very teary and sad about the death of my cat, I was viewing not being able to train for a couple of sessions as an entire derailment of my training plan. A view that had been fostered in my past through previous failed attempts at training programs and not reaching the start line of planned races/events. This attitude will not do at all, it does not get things done or dreams achieved.

What I recognised yesterday was the need to adjust my view of this week's small hiccup as exactly what it was, a small hiccup. Obviously it is detrimental for me to blow a setback like this one out of context and construct a defeatist attitude within myself. Missing only two key sessions of training within its early stages, one a 900 metre swim, the other a 45 minute bike session is not going to render me unable to put together enough training altogether to complete my triathlon in November.

Although I understand that too many missed sessions, no matter how small, can lead to being unprepared and unconditioned for an event, I also understand that there are no gains in pushing through a session when not physically fit enough to reasonably complete them as there will be no training benefit gained anyway. Additionally, in the past I would have immediately looked to double up on training within the next week to make up the lost sessions. I have also learned how detrimental this can be, often leading to over-training, extra pressure and further breakdown. The reality is I have not missed much and I am already back on track, being able to finish today's allocated training session without a hitch.

Ben & Jerry know exactly the right things to say

So this week's training has become about mentally allowing myself to recover, recuperate, re-focus and re-establish my rhythm and my enthusiasm. Despite beginning to write this blog during a highly motivational, lifestyle changing, good-habit forming phase, I want to put my hand up and admit that I am still not immune to some of the weaknesses and issues that led me to being overweight and unfit in the first place.

On Friday I purchased a tub of ice cream with full intention of seeing the bottom of it and using it as an emotional band aid for my troubles. Luckily I only had time for a few spoonfuls before I had to leave the house to go somewhere. However, with that ice cream sitting in my freezer all weekend, I still found temptation too difficult to resist, and this evening's dinner mainly consisted of Choc Chip Cookie Dough Icecream. Yep, I'm a work in a progress..

Puddles & Pain

Wet Wet Wet

The rains are 'ere! Melbourne wet weather has arrived and the last couple of days are turning out to be ones with solid rainfall. This is likely to be the case for at least another week. It has been dry for such a long time that it is actually welcome right now. Plus it is not cold yet, just wet.

Yesterday morning I went out early for my first run in the rain for the year. I wore a long sleeve run top expecting it to be cold and immediately regretted it as I got hot and the sleeves just got wet and stuck to my arms throughout the run. However, it did feel good and although it was only a scheduled 20 minute run today, I felt fitter and lighter than I have for a long time. Also with the addition of puddles along the track I run on, the occasional leap across a puddle felt good for the legs. So, I ran back to my place expecting a good start to day. How wrong I was as I embarked on a day that I'd sooner forget..

Stuck

The first thing that went wrong for the day started in the car park that I share with the other 4 townhouses in our complex. It is an underground affair with a large remote controlled sliding gate to keep our cars secure. I jumped in my car to head to work and pressed the remote to get out. Nothing. Bugger. After multiple presses in the car, outside the car, close to the gate, away from the gate, I decided my remote was probably out of battery and the car was not going anywhere right now.
So, I called work to tell them I might be late and started planning how to get to work and also to find a place to get a battery for my remote in the short time I had today to get things done. As I was working this out I heard one of the young guys in one of the other townhouses leaving for work (he was the only other car left, so the others had left and gotten their cars out before me). I followed him downstairs to the car park, knowing that if he opened the gate for me I could also get out and then sort out my own remote during the day. Nope, his didn't work either and we quickly established that the gate must be malfunctioning.

So after more multiple remote presses at every conceivable angle, I called the mobile number on the gate's motor box and got the number for the technician who normally looks after the gate. The only person who has the manual override key in our group of townhouses had already left for work so no other option was available. After a failed attempt with the old "turn the power off for 10 seconds and turn it back on" trick, the technician told me that the gate might be jammed against the wall. As he couldn't get there for over an hour, he suggested that if we could lift and move the gate along the track to take it off the wall/open it then it may work.

Gate - 1, Kylie - 0

Rito. So the young guy who unfortunately is probably not much stronger than me and could quite possibly blow away in a strong wind, preceded to grab and lift the gate and pull it across the tracks. I have a feeling that running late for work was not going to work well for him today, he was pretty determined to get this thing open. This was working and I went over to the gate to help with the pulling, only to see the gate lift up too high and start tipping over towards the ground. The weight of the thing was no match for me and down I went to the concrete floor, now stuck with a dirty great gate on top of me. I was very lucky not to hit my head on the concrete or do more damage than I did. I had somehow managed to twist to my side during the fall, so that my right arm and leg took most of the gate impact. However, even before I moved, I knew already that my head, shoulder and lower back had copped a hit too.

My poor neighbor was beside himself trying to hold the gate up a little so that I could slowly wriggle out from underneath it. I wasn't sure whether hitting the concrete on my left side, or the gate impact on my right side was worse, so I decided to focus on the fact that I could still move all my limbs to indicate that I was actually ok. I reassured my poor neighbour another 20 odd times that I was in fact alright, and we dragged the offending gate out of the way so we could at least get out cars out of the car park. I called back the technician with the bad news and took off to work a little startled and very sore.

The fallen gate once dragged out of the way

Saying goodbye to Ernie

I spent the morning hobbling around seeing my patients, wondering how much damage I'd actually done to my right shoulder which I can still not lift above my head properly today and my right lower back definitely copped a twist/strain. I now think that I had pushed up with my arm and leg to stop the gate hitting my head completely, and that has now caused muscle strains in my back and shoulder.

Painfully, I got through the mayhem at work, feeling strangely close to tears as I was stressed out and knowing that I had to race out of work on time at 1pm to get home and take my poor little sick cat Ernie to the vet today. Little did I know then just how much worse my day was going to get.

Ernie had been sick on and off for a little while, having bowel/constipation problems, losing weight despite eating, and now he was wobbly on his legs and had started leaking urine all the time from his bladder, so I was keen to get him to the vet hospital to help out. He didn't seem in pain however he was pretty miserable. My other cat Lucy, who normally likes to give him a swipe whenever she passes him, was licking him instead the night before which really worried me. I had spent a long time with him snuggling on my lap too, I had decided he needed this more than I needed to worry about his pee on my pants and I am now so glad that I did.
To cut a long, heartbreaking story short, the vet did an x-ray and found a tumour along with his other colon problems so great that they could not do anything for him, they had to put him down so I had to say goodbye to him forever.

Me & my much loved cats, Ernie is the fatty grey/white one :)

The rest of the day is largely a teary blur. My physical pain from being trapped under the gate was now amplified from losing my cat that I had loved and owned for 9 years. I am so grateful that he will not be suffering and it was the right thing for him (not that I really had a choice) yet as anyone who has owned a pet will know, they are such a large part of your world, and it feels like your heart is ripping out of your chest when they have to go.

My amazing man came home to comfort me as soon as he could, bringing me my favourite cheese & crackers and cooking up an amazing italian dish, things that I no longer eat very often in my quest for fitness and weight loss. He already misses Ernie too, they had an unusual bond. Ernie does not like men very much, but he did love my boyfriend. So a part of our household is now missing, and it will take some time for it to feel better :(

First training setback

So, at risk of further bringing down the miserable tone of today's post even more, I am also too sore and stiff today from the gate incident to do any training this morning. I know that there are no serious injuries as I am already feeling abit better in the back after using heat packs last night, but I am frustrated that I have come across my first need to miss a training session. If all is well, I am considering going for a swim tonight, hoping that swimming will probably not upset anything, yet I will hold off on the scheduled bike session until the back improves abit more. Getting up and down from a chair is hard enough at the moment. By the weekend I am confident that I will be back on track. A few bruises and sore spots are not enough to stop me completely.

Some of the bruising & grazed shoulder coming out today..

These things remind me that life takes twists and turns whenever you least expect it and it is important to remain flexible, open minded, and take what comes as best you can.

RIP to my beautiful furry baby Ernie. You will be missed.

Patience is a virtue

Calm waters

Heading back into the pool to kick start my return to swim training has been incredibly easy. There is something about donning a swim cap and submerging into the water that brings me a sense of calmness and well being. It is very easy to escape into thoughts about nothing except the feel of the water, breathing and your own swimming technique. At times I'm not even sure that I'm thinking about anything at all. The most difficult mental output during this time seems to be keeping track of how many laps/lengths I have swum.

So it has been with enthusiasm that I have headed down to the local pool throughout the last 3 weeks. Although it is currently an indoor pool that I'm heading to at the moment, the atmosphere isn't as stifling as some indoor pools can be. Also, it is sometimes split into 2 X 25 metre pools and sometimes used as a full 50 metre length pool. I much prefer to swim in a 50m pool if I can. Of course I hope to mix up swimming to also include open water swimming, ensuring that I am well prepared for the lake swim I will be racing in come November. However rest assured that regardless, there will be plenty of swimming kilometres to be done in the lap pool.

An obvious disadvantage to swimming is the inability to check your own form or technique without another set of eyes or coaching to help you. I believe that the secret to your greatest improvement and progress in swimming is almost completely technique related. I do aim to attend some triathlon swimming squad sessions at some point in the near future and over the course of my training too.
I needed a starting point to see where I am early on. Thankfully, my boyfriend offered to take some video footage of me swimming during yesterday's session, enabling me to identify my weaknesses and strengths and also to gain immediate feedback from him whilst swimming as well.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that my stroke is stronger than I originally thought. My left arm, which I initially believed was my weaker arm, is actually stronger than my right, and I identified some imbalances to work on. At present I am not swimming longer than 700m sessions, I will move to 900-1km in the next couple of weeks. These feel very short, so it has been important to remain patient and resist the temptation to keep swimming just because I feel good. I need to stick to the plan.


Cycling from my lounge room... to my lounge room..

Right now my road bike still needs a few tweaks to it before it is deemed road worthy and I feel confident to take it out on the bitumen. I'm still able to use it on the mag trainer in the meantime and hope to get outside for a spin next weekend. A mag trainer is the stand that the bike sits on for use as a 'stationery bike' yet allows you to remain on your usual bike set up on your own bike.

Today I completed a steady 45 minutes cycling session. I am definitely looking forward to gazing at more than the wall of my lounge room. Im deliberately not watching TV or using anything else to distract me during these sessions, as then it becomes a bit of a mental exercise as well. I have a TREK bike, that I have had for quite a few years now. Although not the latest and greatest piece of cycling machinery, it works well and is perfectly fine for the purposes of my triathlon quest. I can upgrade further down the track if I wish, but for now I am happy with my little 52 cm frame 'pushie'.

Step by Step

Although my training sessions all feel quite easy now, I have learnt from previous experience that it is important to remain within the limits of these sessions. The cumulative effects of each training session combine for steady overall progress, and it is important to lay down a quality training foundation, building consistency, gradual progress and reduce the risk of setting up poor training habits that will inevitably lead to over-training and injury.

11-Speed groupset, Carbon fork, Flex Polarised, Breakaway zipper.... Um... what? 

I am not overly keen to become too drawn into the world of expensive MUST HAVE triathlon gadgets and equipment. These are often advertised like you will have never have the ability to achieve Personal Bests (PBs), finish a training session, or call yourself a triathlete without them. Not knowing about all these things can even make you feel a touch inadequate. Sometimes I believe that there can be a whole new level of 'wankerdom' achieved in this sport, particularly if you get sucked into the hype and the need to "keep up with the Jones's". Surely I don't really have to change my coffee of choice to a short black, skinny latte, or chai latte to call myself a serious triathlete... do I??

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for shiny and pretty new things, however I am more likely to choose something because I think its a cute colour than for its full technical specifications. Having said that there are certain aspects of equipment and training/racing attire that are important to me. I'm definitely all for purchasing any materials that will DEFINITELY NOT cause dreaded Chafe. I hate chafe. Similarly, find me a bike seat that will not make me unable to sit down for three days following my longest training ride and I'll buy it. As a Podiatrist the right running shoes and socks are an obvious area I have the capacity to be particularly picky in as well. I'm sure there are a few more I am yet to discover. Oh oh, I'm already sounding a little obsessed :)

Plan, Train, Eat, Sleep, Repeat...

If you dont plan, you plan to fail..

This weekend will end the first 3 weeks of training. The first 2 weeks were a repeated introductory week and this week is not much different. The idea is to get back into a routine of training regularly, finding a workable timetable and getting re-introduced to the three disciplines plus core strength and weight training.

I am essentially following a similar training plan to the one that I had been successfully following many years ago to get me to a half ironman, however as I have extra months and am starting practically from scratch this time, I am beginning with an added 3 months triathlon foundation training block first followed by a 21 week half ironman training plan.

All that is left to do now is follow it. Each week is set out with key training sessions that should not be missed, other sessions, rest days and an occasional optional session. Although training is given for each specific day of the week, they can be moved around to suit a busy schedule as long as they are all completed between the Monday - Sunday training week. It is really as simple as following the program, listening to your body, and establishing and maintaining consistency. 

In the past I have been prone to trying to make up for missed sessions by doubling up training sessions. This is a massive no-no and often leads to injury and burn out. I am determined to not make these same mistakes this time round. There will be plenty of new mistakes to make along the way, so I dont need to repeat old ones too :) Of course the key to not playing session catch up is to be consistent enough in my training that I minimise how many sessions I actually miss to start with. It is not rocket science, it is basic common sense really.

Paramount to my success, other than actually doing the training of course, is ensuring that I am fuelling my body properly with the right nutrition, getting enough sleep and recovery, maintaining my sanity and life-work-training balance so as to enjoy the journey, avoid injury, and still be a nice person. I have been discussing these things with my boyfriend who is a high level rugby union player and currently in his 20th season of playing rugby, so fair to say that he knows a thing or two about recovery, looking after your body, and getting the most out of it. Everytime we discuss training we frustrate each other as we both come from two different schools of thought and have different approaches however we also challenge each other and get a decent think tank going. I always get valuable information and support from him, even if I don't listen straight away. His help and support is definitely one of my greatest strengths in getting to this race this year, but don't tell him I said that. haha

      Important to training recovery! :)

The hills are alive with the sound of nature..

Probably my greatest early discovery so far, is that I actually enjoy running without my ipod. Who knew? Initially I was dreading going without it as I thought it was a helpful distraction when I felt like rubbish and could drown out the huffing and puffing. In triathlon events you are not allowed to have any sort of earphones or musical accompaniment unless of course you choose to sing to yourself, which is probably exerting more energy than you need to. So I figured I had better get used to this early on and left the earphones at home. Actually I was down to my final pair of earphones anyway and had somehow managed to drop them outside of my car when visiting my parents and found them on the road the next day crushed by my own car, so kinda didn't have any left to wear anyway.

It turns out that the sounds of nature near my house are kinda cool. Running along the bay makes the sound of the water pretty nice background, especially when there is a southerly wind and there are mini waves crashing on the sand. I can also hear my own breath, which actually becomes kind of rhythmic and helpful to the running cause. My brother and I have talked about 'moving meditation' when you find running gives you a clear mind, almost meditative. Running without the background tunes actually creates that feeling more readily. This is a happy discovery for me.

   Nice view while running near home

The Decision

Once upon a time there was a girl who found herself fat...

Three weeks ago the scales hit 81 kilograms. On a 163cm slightly pear shaped frame, 81 kilograms shows. This is officially the heaviest I had ever been and was the catalyst for making a decision to once again get serious about my health, weight loss, fitness goals, and what it is that I really want to do to get myself there.

Im capable of being fit and have been so in the past. Ive always been a yo-yo on the weight scene, thanks largely to a predisposition to emotional eating that tends to include not just one emotion to trigger food frivolity, but anything from exhilaration and celebration to sadness, loneliness, and boredom. I also refuse to partake in fad diets or starve myself, however I do enjoy exercise and when I'm in a happy, motivated place with a set exercise routine, I can thrive.

In July 2012 I ran in and completed the Gold Coast Marathon, and was at what I consider 'goal weight', the peak of my physical condition for a woman now in her 30s. Closely after I completed that marathon however, I went overseas for some time and somehow lost my running and exercise mojo somewhere within those weeks on-end that I spent happily travelling on trucks and buses, living by campfire and canvas.

The year I 'had to have'...

When I finally settled back into Melbourne life in 2013, I returned to working again as a Podiatrist in a private practice and living in a nice little place near the beach. 

Throughout most of 2013, I found myself in a constant battle between my motivation to run, my awareness of returning weight gain, and a very weird head space. Some people talk about how you can have a year that you 'have to have', which is probably just another way for saying that you sometimes will have a shitty year, however it was an important year that perhaps I did 'have to have'.

This is by no means an excuse but I did have a particularly tough year for flare ups in a condition that I have called rheumatoid arthritis, which did make an already mediocre motivation to get up and go out for a run in dark, cold and rainy conditions seem almost impossible. So I didnt do it most of the time or sporadically at best. 

Emotions were also a ridiculous roller-coaster ride. I achieved coming off anti-depressants for the first time in a while, which was nothing but positive however it did play with my moods quite abit. Although I had been happily separated/divorced for some time I think I found that some of the insecurities and self esteem issues that can lay dormant from those experiences also reared up during last year. It was important that I worked through those, so although I perhaps did not focus so well on my health and my physical condition, I definitely worked very hard on my emotional and mental well-being.

Definitely the best thing that happened in 2013 was meeting the man who I know is my true soulmate and who I believe I was destined to eventually find and join forces with in my life. I must admit the first 6 months we knew each other were quite challenging at times, particularly as I worked through some of my 'baggage' (eek I hate that word!). Being the first time I had actually been in a real and worthwhile relationship with someone since my marriage, it raised things that I needed to work through that I hadn't realised I was effected by. I won't go into it in great detail because I don't want this blog to be all about that, but lets just pop it under the banner of : Let's put up some emotional walls to protect myself and my self esteem from the past and when did my fear of getting hurt become so great?..

But we smashed through those things together very well, and since the beginning of 2014 we haven't looked back. I have never been so happy, content and in love with someone in my life. Cheers to me and my happy love bubble.

Back on Track

So in stretching the happiness bubble to include other facets of my life, especially my health, appearance & other physical challenges, I began thinking about what i would next like to achieve.

One thing that I have learnt about myself is that my motivation to do things are usually tied to a myriad of factors, not just to tick something off as done on my bucket list. For example, I didnt run a marathon just to have ticked off the 'Run a marathon' item on a list. Although I definitely had heartened visions of crossing a marathon finishing line and then be able to call myself a marathoner, what really got me out of bed training on those icy, cold mornings when my hands were claws and bed was cosy, was deeper than that.

Running & training for a marathon was really about proving to myself that I could achieve something difficult on my own. At the time I was living on my own, once again a single woman, finding my own way & my own worth again. Training for & finishing a marathon gave me so much more than a medal, it gave me my confidence back and rebuilt some self esteem.

What next?

Did i want to do another marathon this year? Yes.. Maybe... Not really. The passion to pound the pavement through another winter just isnt there right now. What did I keep picturing I would love to do, could physically do, even in flare ups, what was closest to my heart?

Triathlon..

Ive watched it, trained for it, spent hours thinking and dreaming about it. A few years ago I had entered the Shepparton Half Ironman Triathlon and 5 weeks beforehand got hit by a car whilst out on a training bike ride. Torn calf muscle, smashed up knee cartilage, my race over before it had even began.

Although I physically healed up, mentally I had never really returned to the same headspace. I have barely jumped on my roadbike or gone swimming since.

Until now. 

The decision was made 3 weeks ago. Forster in NSW is holding a half ironman triathlon event in November, and I am going to do it.

It being scheduled nearly 8 months away gives me time to train for it and enough preparation to get fit enough to complete it. Perhaps the biggest drawcard for me is that it is held where my love and respect for the sport first began. Way back when I watched my older brother compete in and finish his first ironman. It has sentimental appeal & familiarity of the course despite that race shifting to Port Macquarie some time ago. 

Today Im 2 1/2 weeks into my training and life has a balance to it that brings a smile to my face already. Let the games begin...