Well this week I have been a bit sick and had to miss two days of work due to runny nose, headache, watery eyes, and then a weird rash on my face and hands…. I am feeling better today and even went for a run/walk with the dogs on the way back from dropping the car off for servicing.

I have been using myfitnesspal dutifully for 5 days in a row. I have lost 2.2 lbs midway through the week. I have been eating healthy foods, mostly vegetarian, lots of beans, some veg juices. I found that adding a 1/2 of an apple and a 1/4 of a lemon to the mix made it much more palatable.

I am going to have  testing done today using the MegGem system. I don’t know much about it but I hear they use it on the Biggest Loser and it gives you a # for your resting metabolic rate. I will write an update about it after. My friend Lisa has a new program called Real Solutions weight loss management and she in doing the testing. I have also joined a group of work buddies in a facebook support group to encourage each other towards our goals. So the support is in place, now lets get on with the show.

Here is to new beginnings again.

xoxo Betty

fitness, goals, nutrition, Uncategorized, weight loss goals, health, meal plans, nutrition, weight loss

2010  YEAR IN REVIEW  2010

2010 was an excellent year that kind of fizzled at the end so I am doing a year in review to inspire me for the upcoming “season”

WCOC aka Oliver Olympic Triathlon

Swim: 1500 m  Bike: 40 km  Run:  10 km

TIME: 3:50:05

I had high hopes for this Olympic distance triathlon, but I was not prepared for the open water swim in early May. There is no way I could be prepared for it we only started being able to swim in the lake the week before….The only thing that kept me going was the support of family and friends. Mom and Dad and Mer out on the bike route, Anna on the run course, Gary running me in to the finish, Mike and Heather  and Coach Kev at the finish, tri buddies along the way, and of course Mark everywhere (not laughing as I was bawling after a horrible swim).  I think I will need to revisit this one with some lake swimming under my belt.

Man of Steel: Rec. Division

Bike: 10 km  Swim: 400 m  Run: 5 km

TIME: 00:58:23      1st Place

This was a great race right from the beginning. All of my indoor training in the fall and spring really paid off. I got on my bike and took off like a shot. Hills that would have bogged me down in the past were like ant hills, not Hillbourne  of course it is still hilly The swim was kinda meh, I am not a great swimmer without a good warm up and it was a pool swim with next to no warm up, did okay though. Now the run was awesome. This is where my competitive streak came out, I googled my closest competitor to check what her 5 km run time was on a similar course. I am not proud of it but it kept me going and I had a goal to beat. I was lucky to have my friend Heather to run with and she pushed me hard. Later she told me she was pushing hard too. I ran a great time on a hilly hot course and I was so happy with the race. Best of all a bunch of my buddies were in the race too. Such a fun sport. Gotta do it again this year and see if I can knock some more time off. I know Bryn is gunning for me.

Peachland Beach Run

5 km

TIME: 00:24:13   4th in my age group

Heather and I decided to run together in the beginning and then see what happened as the race developed. I guess I ran a bit faster than she expected because we got a fast start to the race and since it was only 5 km we kept bookin’ it. She pulled away from me but I was able to keep her in my sights. I had another couple of ladies that I tried to keep up with and that spurred me on. When I crossed the finish line I couldn’t believe that I had knocked over 3 min off my last years time, in which I came 4th as well. All depends who shows up for the race…

Across the Lake Swim Kelowna

2.1 km open water

TIME: 00:44:45  (my goal was 45 min)

I was really quite nervous about this event. I felt a lot better about the concept of swimming across a large open water distance after having some lake swimming practice, but it was still daunting. As I was swimming I really worked on my spotting and trying to swim in the straightest most efficient manner. During the middle portion of the swim I got worried that I was really off course or last because I could see anyone around me, it turns out that I was right on course and a whole heck of a lot of people were way off course, like floating towards the bridge off course. While I wasn’t thinking about spotting I was focusing of swim techniques in order to not think about what was lurking beneath. Great experience I’ll probably do it again.

Summerland Sprint Triathlon

Swim: 750 m (slightly short)  Bike: 20 km  Run: 5 km (slightly long)

TIME:  1:24:12    21 min faster than last year!

This was a great race. While I was racing it there were times when I questioned WTF am I doing? As I watch the time and I knew that I was going to beat my last years time handily I became very happy. I knew something was amiss when I came out of the water in 12:27 almost 9 min faster than last year. As we would find out there were some technical difficulties with the swim markers. That being said I was still faster on the swim. The bike was close to my goal of riding it in 38 min at 40:30 11 min faster than last year. It was hard transitioning from bike to run and some of the girls I was keeping up to on the bike zipped past me on the run. On the other hand some of the men that had been ahead of me on the bike were now walking and I was passing them. The run times were very close which is not much of a surprise as running was my “specialty” last year. I did improve my time by 1:15, plus we think the run was a tad longer than last year with some course adjustments.

A great race. I will do it again for sure. I don’t know how much more time I can knock off though…

UBC Fall Classic 1/2 Marathon

21.1 km

TIME: 2:18:13   right in the middle of my goal range

I had no idea of what to expect on the day of the race, I had been suffering with IT band, knee and hip pain for a couple of weeks and I wasn’t able to get my long run past 17 km without a ton of pain. I went to physio and massage and just rested and hoped.  On the day of the race it was -3 plus the windchill and there was ice on the ground! I started off conservatively and by 3 km I was feeling okay despite almost wiping out on the icy slight downhill. Who did I see on the side of the road? Mark, he had pulled up with sore calf and could not continue at the pace he had been running. Lucky me, he decided to pace me until he couldn’t run any further, and double lucky me he was able to run the whole thing. The distance really wasn’t that bad. Near the end I was getting a bit antsy and I just wanted to be done. Mark stopped to pick up a wrapper I had dropped and I popped on my headphones and found the running demon within. I just started booking it. I started to reel in target runners. The guy in the green shirt gotcha! 2:20 goal lady gotcha, lady with twins we chatted with at 12 km in who dropped us at the aid station gotcha.

Doesn’t matter that I could barely walk or lower myself to a seated position for 2 days after I am so happy with my result. I would like to do it again better trained, uninjured and in warmer weather. In other words perfect conditions, oh and a tailwind both ways if you don’t mind.

Here is to a great 2011. Fitness, happiness and camaraderie.

Love,

Betty

cycling, fitness, goals, running, swimming, triathlon, Uncategorized cycling, fitness, goals, running, swimming, triathlon

Life lessons come at you when you least expect it and probably most need them. I didn’t want to go running at the track tonight but when I got there I notice a lady walking, slowly but surely around the track with an unsteady gait. Watching her gave the motivation to keep going with the workout.
At the end of my run I gave her a thumbs up and told her she looked strong, she returned the compliment. When she stopped walking she really started to wobble. We walked around the track for my cool down, she shared that she has a neuro/muscular disease and she walks 12 laps and rides her bike for 12 more to help keep her muscles working well. I have no limitations other than those that are formed in my mind.
Thank you for the inspiration when I needed it Colleen aka lady at the track

Uncategorized

I am still alive. I completed an Olympic distance triathlon recently and I will post a big race summary soon.

Uncategorized running, swimming, triathlon

Hi there in webland, if anyone is still reading…. I have been neglecting the blogging lately. One of the reason is my site no longer has the stats on it so I am not addicted to see how many people are reading (talk about ego).
I have also been very busy with triathlon training, writing a nursing paper and general family life.
I have a few goodish ideas for posts so stay tuned.

Uncategorized blogging, fitness

I can not believe that I have not posted in more than a month! I do not have a perfectly crafted post though I do have a whole bunch of ideas. I thought I should at least put something out there to crack the crust on my writing.

So Happy New Year. Let`s make it the best one yet!

Uncategorized blogging, weight loss

I had a really great time in Vancouver. We visited Sophie’s orthopedic surgeon to see if she urgently needs surgery to straighten out her legs (the femurs are twisted from all of the years of tight muscles, from CP, pulling on them as they develop. Good news is she does not need to have the surgery immediately and if she never wants to have it she doesn’t need to. The only real pressing need for the surgery is if she wanted to have her legs appear straighter for aesthetic reasons. She will not be creating permanent damage to her knees or hips if she does not have her legs “fixed”. Huge load off my mind.

My eating was about 85% good while we were away, which I consider very good. I actually went for a run, which involved a stair workout, and went to the hotel gym. I never would have done this in the past, uh uh, no way. I would have used the trip as an excuse to be lazy. Things have changed.

When we got back I had a very tough time, due to fatigue, hormones,  bleh weather, and a couple of busy days at work. It is amazing how just 24 hours or less can make you feel like the sky is falling. With my new resilience I was able to turn my mood/state around and be a good planner, eater and exerciser.

I totally love, love, love spinning. I get such a good workout, I sweat, I feel challenged but empowered at the same time. There is no comparison to riding a stationary bike on your own.

My current goal is to be in the 160′s by Christmas. I had an excellent week from Tuesday on and had a couple of glasses of wine last night as well as some appies at a party. I am fine with the deviation because it is not going to be the beginning of a trend but just a fun night out. Back to the regularly scheduled program.

Tattoos here I come.

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I am finding depression and anxiety very prevalent in the women I see going through the medical system. It does not seem to matter what socio-economic bracket these women are from they appear to be equally touched by these disorders.

Have there always been this many women struggling with depression and anxiety? Is there more pressure on women now, are we less stimulated, not as connected to our physical self, living in our heads. Did women used to cope in different ways that are not acceptable anymore, such as heavy duty anti-anxiety meds such as valium and the non prescription Merlot? Do women have more pressure on them, more requirements of their time and attention? Or is it a higher report rate; are women just more open with talking about their challenges and willing to accept treatment?

I am not sure of the answer. I have not done any kind of study but I really am surprised how many women seem to be struggling with these potentially debilitating disorders.

Could it be that women in the past have asked for the right to do everything and now our generation is paying the price? Great, now we get to care for the kids, work full-time, handle the banking, food shop, make the food, clean up after the food, wash, fold and put away the laundry, pets to the vet, buy the pet food, and so on and so on, not to mention mowing the lawn, and taking out the garbage. What happened to the pink and blue jobs?

What is to be done about depression and anxiety? I know that I suffer from a low to moderate anxiety. I am a worrier. I sometimes get a cramp in the pit of my stomach when I forget what I was worrying about, then I remember and I feel a sense of relief when I am able to go back to worrying again. I have experienced and acute depression before and it was not fun.

We are often so concerned with our physical health and appearance, what is so different about taking care of our mental health?

For me the things that have been helping me control my anxiety is EXERCISE. What do you know exercise can help keep you physically and mentally healthy? Fighting chaos by keeping my house in order, planning meals, looking ahead on the calendar, all help me keep the anxiety at bay.

People who are self described type A’s are really employing a self protection device. They know their limits for anxiety and they set boundaries for what is acceptable to them. I kind of understand now. I do have a bit of the Type A in me but there is also a messy rebel who does not want to do all of the cleaning on her list (wink Mom).

Not really sure where this rant is going…I wonder if there is a study or a master’s thesis in the study of women’s mental health.

fitness, organizing, ponderings, Uncategorized health, Mental health, organizing

I was running a bit late leaving for work tonight and I had two choices, take the car and I can be at work in about 3 min. I decided that I would walk fast like. Well what do you know I got a surge of energy and decided to run to work…I’ll run as far as I can and then I will walk. Hmmm I ran the whole damn way even up the hill just before the Hospital.

I am proud of me.

Betty

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I have been plugging along with the exercise and eating. I have had some super good weeks with 4 lb weight loss and then a not so good weekend that netted those 4 lbs back again. I am now officially 64 lbs not much since the spring but still a tonne of weight gone, that is the big picture. My intention is to have 88-90 lbs gone before 1 year is up which will be Oct 13th.

I am going to do the Summerland Sprint Triathlon at the end of the month. I do not have a wetsuit, I have a new bike that I have not spent much time on and I have just now really gotten back to swimming, the running should be okay. One out of three aint bad. I am quite nervous about the transition but I will survive. I ran and swam in the same day the other day and I feel like I did quite well. I hav a totally sore back right now partially because of the amount of exercise but I think my cycle is starting, oh fun times…bloat bloat bloat.

I have no computer at home right now. Tracy if you read this that’s why I haven’t responded to your profound question on facebook.

Betty

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