Triathlon Training is Intense

Okay, so much has happened since I last blogged. I have been training for a sprint triathlon. In particular, the Danskin (Yes, I got in.)on August 17th, but I hope to do others. Okay, at least one additional tri. As I mentioned in a previous post, I joined Raise the Hope with Raise the Bar. It's been interesting.



I've had some training challenges:

I am working on my swimming. I joined one of our technique classes. I think I joined it too early, as I really need to go back and relearn the basics of swimming. So, I am suspending my technique classes and picking up a twice a week swimming class.
I tried to pick up speed with my running and developed shin splints. In addition, I learned that I wasn't really stretching properly or icing my shins. So, I'm heading back to the track after a two week break tomorrow. I will need to start slow and build up.

I haven't been back on my actual bike, but I have been riding the stationary bike. I am taking the lessons learned from running and working out using Podfitness - Polar Heart Rate workouts.

This last point is very important. I believe that I am overworking and burning sugar instead of fat. I am not losing weight, but I am working out a lot. So, I am working for the next two weeks at a lower hear rate. While I was running, I would spend most of my workout with my heart rate above 160. Intense, but not smart.

I hope to report back a healthy shin and a little weight loss.

21 Day Cleanse is HARD!!

So, I haven't been the most faithful, but a lot is happening. I've had about 60% successs. Next week is the last week and I plan to do better. In fact, I plan to keep going in a modified fashion.

I have not maintained a vegan diet. I've been eating meat. BUT, I have exercised 2x in the last week and that is very good.

In addition, I am meeting with my triathlon team on Thursday, so that is also very positive. I will have my body fat measured on Monday, which should also encourage me to adopt a better diet in the upcoming month.


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2008 will be a great YEAR!!

I am very excited about the upcoming year, but before I share with you what's coming, I will admit my shortcomings for 2007.

I deviated from eating vegan food during the holidays. I ate fried turkey and ham on Thanksgiving. I had the weirdest cravings for baked chicken the following week. I went back on a vegan diet plan until Christmas. Oh, I did attempt eat fried fish 2x before Christmas and threw it up each time. I'm done with that.

So, again I had fried turkey on Christmas and other items with dairy and/or eggs during the holiday season. On New Year's Eve, I enjoyed grilled salmon and other vegetarian dishes with eggs/dairy. Today, I had a turkey sandwich.

Okay, so those have been my challenges over the last few weeks. What's next!!

21 day cleanse. Yeah, it starts on Monday, thus my continued lax approach to a vegan diet. I will be giving up processed foods during this cleanse. It takes you from a vegan diet to a raw diet over the three weeks. Very cool. This is the same cleanse as 21 Day Detox Steve's Cleanse has an advanced protocols for people who are already raw foodist. That's not me.

2007 State Championship

Rodney's football team battled for the state championship this weekend. They didn't win, but it was a great game. Those kids played hard. It was a lot of fun and we are very proud of his team. Yeah!!! O'dea Fighting Irish!!!

It's over. I give up.

Okay, so I am a whimp when it comes to wind. I was sitting upstairs and the wind was howling and the rafters shaking. All I could think about was that I would die starving. No, this was not the day to complete a water fast.

I actually think that I would have been more successful at work. There is a lot to keep my busy at the office. I can even work through lunch with nary a thought. So, my next attempt will be at the end of the month.

I don't feel bad about breaking the fast. I was very hungry at lunch, but next time I will be in an environment that doesn't make it easy for me to break the fast. Hey, sometimes a little public pressure is all that I need . . . the coworkers love to watch hunger.

I'm still vegan. : )

Raw Divas Detox - Day 1

It's 10:40 am and I'm doing fine. I dropped my toddler at daycare. It's Veteran's Day, so I am home for the day. I did a little shopping this morning. I stopped at the health food store (Nature's Market) and picked up Senna Leaf to aid with elimination.

The wind is howling like crazy outside. Lucky me. A holiday and mother nature wants to bring my house down. Ugh! Well, it's perfect for staying inside.

Of course, there are several things that I should do: study for SHRM exam, bring summer clothes back upstairs, get a pedicure, make my hair appt, make a waxing appt, bundle cardboard for recycling tomorrow, buy a sprouter and appropriate beans, and finish gathering tax information. The Raw Divas tell you to take it easy. Hmmm . . . what does that look like.

Normally, the 24 hour water fast begins at 6pm and ends at 6pm. I made this decision late last night, so I shouldn't break it until tomorrow morning.

Raw Detox

Okay, the vegan journey continues, but weight loss has not been a real benefit of this change. I have lost some weight, but not as much as I imagined. I keep reading really good things about a raw vegan diet. So, I've decided to take a mini-step in this direction. I am doing this for the following reasons:

• Kick off weight loss
• Retrain palate to desire less sugar
• Reduce the quantity of food consumed

My path to this journey is Raw Divas 7 day Detox, which will only be 5 days for me. In fact, I am not following all of the rules of the 7 Day Detox. First, I am starting early. I am scheduled to leave town on Saturday morning for a Thanksgiving Holiday. I can't be raw vegan in Texas. I can barely be vegan in Texas.

So, instead of waiting to do the detox, I've decided to do 75% and maybe do another round when I return. Day 1 is a water fast. I had a glass of wine this evening, which was probably not the best idea for a pre-fast beverage.