Sunday, June 08, 2008

Ready Set GO!

Well, I've probably lost my mind but I've laid down a new challenge for myself. I am going to enter my first athletic event in well over thirty years.
.25 Mile Swim - 8.2 Mile Bike - 2 Mile Run
Sunday, August 10, 2008 7:00AM
I have tried to get myself in shape since having a third of my right lung removed just a little over a year ago. Believe me, it's been a really hard road. I was a two to three pack a day cigarette smoker for over thirty years. It's now been six years since I quit. I've battled emphysema and the partial lung removal on a long hard comeback to getting in shape. I still have a long way to go. I've lost 34 pounds since I started a new job 23 months ago. I try to work out at least four days a week and now I have taken up running outdoors and bicycling (see my post from Dec 16, 2007 for more on this). I still can't run much distance at all and that is the part of this triathlon that worries me the most. Now I've got a reason to work harder. I am certain that entry in a paid sporting competition just has to be a motivating factor. And now that I've made this public to the world I just have to go through with it.
The one thing that I keep telling my wife and myself is that I am NOT in this event to win it, just to FINISH it! Believe me, just finishing WILL be an accomplishment.

7 comments:

Janet said...

A two mile run in the southern August heat????...just the thought of that makes me nauseous!
I sure am glad you changed that profile picture, too....this one is much friendlier!

RHoward454 said...

I stopped at the lake on the way home yesterday for some swimming and now realize that I have been worrying about the wrong thing. It's not the running that's going be hardest, it's the swimming. I wasx way too hasty (and uninformed) about thinking that a 1/4 mile swim was no big deal.

As for the picture, I kind of liked the old grouchy curmudgeon photo....it suited my personality more.

Janet said...

...but, if strangers come here and see that photo, they might be frightened away...

SisToPencilMeIn&SimpleMusings said...

I need your determination. My Triathlon Event would look like this:
Sit on couch-.5 hours
Check email-.25 hours
Nap-2 hours

The only thing I can say is I'm consistent!
Good luck!

Robert McLaughlin said...

I wish you the best on the triathlon. Keep up the good work, and no "loafing" around.

-Robert

Thru The Lens said...

Are you running, swimming, and biking every day to prepare? I say this rather jokingly. I do get in my daily walk, but sometimes it's difficult

RHoward454 said...

No, you can't work yourself hard every day. You have to have recovery days. I save weekends for my bike rides. I swim 2 to 3 days a week, and I run at least 4 days a week.