Photos... need to get back to accountable...

The last time I posted a photo was in April... APRIL!  And my weight has been all over the place since then.  I have been on a very long term plateau, and it is time that I buckle down and get back to work.  For me, the weekly photos kept me accountable... and successful.

206.2

204.2
 

The shadows on these photos make it hard to see much of a difference at all.  And if I am being honest, the photos I should be taking now are the side profile.  That is where I am seeing the weight loss... or gain... more than these front shots. 

As with any journey, you have to pay attention... notice when you are starting to move backward... and set up your next plan of attack... and for me... my attack is accountability!

One-derland... I'm coming back! :-)




12 Years...

Who cares what we were toasting at this moment... I love
you, Jeff... and always will!

... there is so much going on right now...

... but nothing more important than the 12th anniversary of our wedding vows!

Yes, we even left my 25th high school reunion last night early to celebrate (more on that later!)...

I love you with all my heart, my sweet husband!  Here's to 12 years plus 12 years plus even more 12 years!

... until we are that couple, slowly walking in the park, hand in hand, in our 90's...

I... Love... You!

Happy Anniversary!

Carlsbad Tri... MVHS Reunion Tri... Jeff's first Tri...

Jeff and me (and Anna and Abby) picked up the
race packets for our teams... 16 hours to go
before race time!

... what an AMAZING day!  :-)  Next weekend is my 25th high school reunion from Mission Viejo High School - class of 1988.  Several months back, a few of us reconnected and found that we are all doing triathlons or one leg of a tri, so we decided to set up (2) relay teams for the Carlsbad Triathlon... one week before our reunion... sort of a reunion challenge!

Ends up that someone on the "other" team had to back out so Jeff decided to fill in... for his first tri... doing the bike leg... on the team against me... and I was also doing the bike leg for my team... hence, we have had some fun smack talk going on for the past few months.  There was no doubt in my mind that Jeff would beat me on the bike leg, but it was a matter of how much time he would gain for his team.

Who knew that a 1,000 meter beach start swim...
... 16 mile bike...
... and 3.1 mile run could be SOOOOOO MUCH FUN? :-) 

As usual, the photos will tell the story...

OUR transition area... you have NO idea how much I have waited
to say those words! :-)  Yes, we were on opposite teams, but my
sweet husband was doing a triathon with me...OK... against me...
... who cares?  He was with me!

... in THIS corner, Team Justwingit...Steph, Roger and Jeff...
... and in the other corner, Team LoserBuysBeer... Mike and me (and Gary)...
who was supposed to do our run until he had knee surgery... a week ago... darn...
I had to have a mulit-time and trainer Ironman do our swim and bike... ;-)

I've never done or seen a beach start tri before...
... could this BE more beautiful?

... pretty big group for the beach start!

Jeff and I were jogging to warm up... I've NEVER run with Jeff...
I KNOW after today we will be a (2) member tri family!
 

Another photo of the beach start... oh... I should mention that we handed
our camera off to injured team member, Gary, who took all these
photos while we were warming up!  (THANK YOU!!!)

WOOO HOOOO!  There is my teammate, Ironman Mike, coming in
strong from the swim.  We saw him coming and this is when I started
getting nervous!  Since Mike was one of the first out of the water, there
was a bullseye on my back... and Jeff was all over it!

There is Jeff starting his first tri bike... white star on his back...
the race is ON!

JustWingIt runner Roger starting the run... and friend and regular
triathlete in the over 75 category, Bill Hines is at the front of the screen...

Ironman Mike finishing up our run... WOO HOOOOOOOOO!

Our teammates and family waiting for Roger from Jeff's team to finish...

And here comes Roger... up the left... GO, GO, GO!!!

Today was sooooo amazing.  A great course... great friends... and Jeff finally INSIDE the transition area with me.  Another great surprise were friends Matt and LaLa there at the finish cheering us on!  :-)  At lunch, after the race, we all agreed to do this again next year... although (3) months out, we will be picking names and race legs out of a hat... :-) 

And for those of you that were following the Jeff vs. Tracey bike challenge... yes, Jeff beat me in time... he finished 3:31 faster than me... however, my team took 6th place out of 21 co-ed tri teams and I met my goal of 18MPH even on this hilly course.  I had a GREAT ride thanks to Jeff's fixing of my gears... but Jeff had an even better ride.  Jeff will get the new jersey... but we were all winners today... by the numbers... and by the heart! :-)  Next year can't come soon enough!!!

SDIT 2013 - Race Report

Could there BE a more beautiful place for a 7AM swim?  I was
4th out of the water in this group, so I'm right up there...

First off, I... LOVE... THIS... RACE!  It is local... it is beautiful... and a great course with lots of fantastic volunteers! 

Pre-race - I was feeling ready and very excited for this race... even though the weather called for exessive heat warnings.  It was in the mid-80's and high humidity at the coast when we were picking up our race materials the day before the race with the temps expected to increase race day.  I prepared to take my own hydration (camel back on the bike and a bottle for the run... all frozen with ice the night before) to be sure I was OK for the race.  I should have known that KOZ totally increased the water stations from the year before... I think I counted (6) water stations, where there were only (2) the year before.

Race Day - When we arrived at the race at 5:45AM, it was already almost 70 degrees... but by race time, the weather had changed!  It remained overcast, but the wind started blowing.  When we were up at Cabrillo National Monument on the bike, the clouds were blowing across the road... it looked like we were riding into the clouds... actually, I guess we were! :-)  When we got to the flat seaside run, the wind was howling.  It felt like I was running in a wind tunnel.  Yes, it was cool!  But the headwind was a challenge! 

Alright... enough of the chatter... it is time for the photos to tell this story...

6:30AM... it was already so warm that Anna
was in shorts as I was about to jump into the water.

This photo tells it all... TOTAL SHOCK as I came out of the water! 
Wooooo Hoooooo!

I had some tech issues with the bike and knew
I was 10 minutes off my goal... had to pick it up!

The wind killed me on the run... although I ran more (walked less) and felt
better on the run this year.

Anna made us a cool sign... and is showing here how hard the wind
was blowing... she didn't have to hold her sign, the wind held it for her.

Me and Briony... PHEW...It's over! :-)

Our Palomar YMCA racers... love having a "gym" to train at that
comes along with a family to race with!

At the finish line, Anna (dog lover) met a new 180 pound friend!

WINNERS!  I took 2nd just behind Paul Torres... I beat her by 10 minutes
on the swim, she beat me by 10 minutes on the run... our transitions
were pretty equal.  It KILLS me that my mechanical issues on the bike
cost me this race!  AUGH!!!  :-)  Onto the next race!

... RACE TIME - SD International Triathlon!!!

WOOO HOOOOOOO!  And here we go!  I'm SOOOOOO excited about the race tomorrow.

 

... not so excited about getting up at 3AM...

... not so excited about the extreme heat warning...

... but my training has been solid, my long bricks on the course have been fantasic... I am excited because I am ready and I look forward to having fun at the race tomorrow.  I know, I know... isn't that how you are always supposed to feel... like you are having fun?  Don't get me wrong... this is NOTt going to be a walk in the park... 1,000 meter swim, 18 mile hilly bike, and 6.2 mile run, but I am looking forward to mentally talking myself through the pain and (hopefully) a great race!

And, I don't think there are jellies in the water... :-)

If you are interested, here is my 2012 SDIT Race Report

Time for dinner and bed... see you for the 2013 Race Report tomorrow!

... reason #247 - Why I Love My Husband...

... footprints... on our honeymoon...

... I called Jeff today and Jessica (our 23-year-old daughter) answered his phone. 

Jess - "MOM... that is the CUTEST thing ever!"

Me - "What was so cute?"

Jess - "Jeff's ringtone for you is the song from your wedding... your first dance song... 'When A Man Loves A Woman.'"

I could hear Jess handing Jeff the phone and telling him how cute the ringtone was...

... and I could hear his smile as he took the phone and said, "Hello." :-)

((( cue the butterflies that filled my stomach as I gushed through the rest of our conversation )))

Music Day... Don't be "Broken..."

There is a new song that I've added to my training playlist.  It is a slow, but powerful song, and it reminds me why it...IS... SO... IMPORTANT... TO... PLAY with your spouse. 

Don't let yet years go by...

I know...

...you are dealing with the kids...

and the bills...

and everything else...

...except your love. 

Don't get yourself into a place where your relationship is "Broken." You have a choice... broken from him.. or playing with him... :-)

Don't worry, you are "not broken, just bent... and you can learn to love again!"  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gwx4iTRLXG8

If I'm talking to you... listen to Pink's "Just Give Me A Reason." Little steps can make it happen.

Life and love are AMAZING...don't forget why you love.

AMGEN Tour of California... WOOO HOOO!

Jeff about to do the AMGEN pre-tour ride in 2006 with Bruce Jenner.

I learned how to ride a bike when I was a kid...

... and as I grew up, I had no idea there was something called a "professional bike race..."

... until I started dating Jeff.

My husband doesn't watch Sunday Night Football or much basketball or hockey

Dave and Jeff at the start of the ride in 2006.

(except for the Superbowl... we watch commercials... or if a local team is in the playoffs, we'll watch some highlights)

... Jeff has been a tour bike race spectator for over 30 years.  So much so that during our honeymoon in the Dominican Republic, we stood at the TV and sometimes had to hold the rabbit ears to watch the one station that was following the Tour de France that year.

8 years ago, California started a Tour Race... the AMGEN Tour of California.  In 2006, right after Jeff finished chemo, he decided to do the pre-ride before the Tour that was a cancer fundraiser.  It is funny looking back, because Bruce Jenner, olympic athlete, but known at the time as the new star of "The Kardashinas," started off the ride.

I've been following races and cheering/jeering along with Jeff for the past 13 years.  There has been a lot of cycling ups and downs since then, but this is a FANTASTIC sport and we can't wait to follow along with this year's race again...

... here are some photos of the Tour setting up in downtown Escondido... knowing that the best in the world are HERE and racing on our streets is AMAZING! 

VIP Tents setting up on Grand

The stage and podium.

The "Joor Muffler" got a cycling
jersey and cap for the Tour. :-)

I love this murial that was created for the Tour.

Back on Top... Spring Sprint Tri!

My sweet bug at the start line.  She told me just
before this photo, "MOM... the jellyfish are still
there... I just saw a bunch of them..."  Great...

If you follow my blog, you know the past 6+ months has been tough as far as training goes... after 3 years of training and weight loss, I'm back to work and dealing with long work hours, I tried mixing up my training and found that I was gaining weight...

... and today, I finally put together a race that I am very proud of! :-)

I had a few new mental issues to deal with during this race...

First, I was in the same rack and wave start as the elites and military. I got to my AWESOME rack station (front and center) and found a guy, sitting on the ground with electronic stimulators attached to his quads. WOW, is this what elite athletes do to warm up? He was the nicest guy, but his warm up freaked me out just a bit.
 
Triatheletes are always so supportive, so I shouldn't be surprised, but racking with the "big dogs" was great! The conversation was fun, and I noticed that my racking was pretty much the same as everyone else... we had the same stuff in the same order... good... I was doing something right! :-)


We handed Anna the camera...
Jeff and me at the start. :-)

I always meet fantastic people during the race, and today, I met (and raced against) a gal who was 5 months pregnant!!! And this was her 3rd triathlon since she became pregnant!!! Of course I asked her about her story and she said this was her 2nd baby and that her training and racing was helping her with the pregnancy!!! WOW! What a total inspiration! She took first place in the under 40 Athena category! :-)

I am also always inspired by the challenged athletes... especially the guy with one leg and one ski that raced right by me during the run... and this race was about the itty bity racers... starting at 7 years old! You should have seen those kids crushing the finish line! 

Other challenges... all those jellies in the water... see the photos for that story... 
... the wind... yep, it started at 6AM while we were setting up transition, which meant that it would be howling on Fiesta Island... which it was!

I hope you enjoy the story... this season is now OFFICIALLY ON! :-)  The photos will tell the rest of the story..

We were the first group into the water, and Anna just told me there
were jellies everywhere.  Sure enough, I'm looking at a jelly
the size of my head as I have to jump in for warm up...
atleast the guy behind me is not too excited, either!

15 seconds to start... HERE... WE...GO!

Jeff got AMAZING photos of my swim today!  I decided to start
front and center and here I'm trying to see who is kicking me
from the front!

I'm coming around a buoy... and I really didn't want to get
hit...like I did... upside the head at buoy 4...

Starting the ride, and I see my sweet husband and Anna...
LET'S... GO!

Hard bike with the winds at Fiest Island are DONE!
Start of the run...

Coach Laura always says, "You're going to finish... so FINISH FAST!"

WOOOO HOOOOO... finish line!

Tom and I are Palomar YMCA Triathletes and challenge
each other... next race SDIT!

FINALLY... a win! WOOO HOOOO!

Spring Sprint Triathlon in T-8:30 hours...

... on our way to bed to get some rest since I'm starting in Wave 2 (6:50AM) in the Spring Sprint Triathlon tomorrow...

... but I had to share with you what we found in the water... at the start line... when we checked out the course this morning....

YEP... bunches of jellyfish.  I've had dolphins in the water during my races... and seen plenty of fish jumping across the waves... but this is a new one!  Alright... HERE... WE... GO! :-)