Bright lights on the bike trail

I ride my bike on a paved bike trail. This morning it was dark and I could see headlights in the distance. At first I thought somone had parked their car in a clearing and shined their lights up the path so they could see while they walked. But the lights kept getting closer and closer. They got so close that I was looking for somewhere to ditch so I wouldn't get run over.

Then, at the last second, they came together and it was then that I realized that it was actually two bike riders with lights on the front of their bikes. Freaked me out, though.

Not a good week

It's been tough to get motivated this week. I work out in the morning, and every morning has been dark and foggy. It's tough to be motivated when it's crummy outside, especially when it's 6 a.m. and I'm still tired. But I know if I quit now I will be mad at myself and I won't pick it back up.

I see this triathlon as the one thing I can do personally that is unique. When I was in college I tried out for the football team but quit after a few weeks to concentrate on classes. I was doing well compared to the scholarship players. I always have wondered if I could have made it if I stuck with it.

I know I will be able to do this tri if I just stick to it. But I wish the sun would shine.

Advice from a gold medalist

So I asked my friend Garrett Weber Gale about some swim techniques that can help me get started swimming. Here is what he suggests:

"The way to build stamina in the pool is by swimming. Slowly build yourself up. Don't try to do too much at the beginning because you will be exhausted and it is easier to burn out. Make sure you do more than just swimming. Use a kickboard and kick. Use a pullbouy and pull. Try putting fins on. Maybe go a 25 as fast as you can and then a few 25's really easy to recover. Throw some oddballs at your body and it will soon adapt to what you give it."

That's him on the left in the picture next to Michael Phelps after the 4 x 100 meter relay team won gold in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Garrett is a great guy - he's overcome high blood pressure early in life to become a world class athelete. And he's a great role model for kids - after he won his medals he came to my daughter's school and did an entire presentation. He answered all their questions and was a great influence on them.

Be sure to check out his Web site - http://www.gwgswims.com/ and his blog http://garrettwebergale.blogspot.com/
He is also a great chef - partly because of his high blood pressure - and has great ideas for healthy meals. I'm sure we'll see him on Food Network someday!

Thanks, Garrett for your advice. We'll see how it works, starting tomorrow!

Extending my bike ride

Did an extra few miles on my bike ride this morning. Felt good riding, but my knees have been killing me all day.

My daughter, who is a veteran of two triathlons, said the best time to do a triathlon is in the rain. It rained during the one she did this year, and she liked it much better than the hot weather the year before.

I'll take her advice!

Getting my sea legs

Swimming wasn't so bad today. I swam four laps, which amounted to eight lengths. I haven't been able to complete a lap without stopping to catch my breath, but I felt that I did better today.

I've really tried to eat healthy and watch what I eat. I try to avoid carbs if possible. It was hard today - a lady at work brought in a big pile of ho-ho's, twinkies and so forth. I opted to eat a bunch of cherry tomatoes. My wife was proud of me.

On to biking tomorrow.

Big boy triathletes

Great article on big guys getting started in triathlons.

Plus this site

And this one

A fish out of water

Did I mention that swimming is by far my worst event? Found this site for beginning swimmers that is good, although hard to read.

The triathlon I want to do starts with a 500-yard swim. That's 10 laps. Right now I can do one length, then I need to stop and rest. I can do about 6 lengths (three laps) before I'm ready to die. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Maybe I should take tips from my friend and Olympic gold medalist Garrett Weber-Gale?

Today's workout

Workout this morning: 6 mile bike ride.

Bike riding is by far the favorite part of my workout. I'm not worried about the bike riding part of the triathlon, I see that as my best event. Running would be next, followed in a distant, distant third by swimming.

When I played football I always hated running. That's why I was a lineman - run five yards, stop and rest, then start over. My kind of running. Always hated running in basketball too. Maybe that's why I was never very good.

I have a hybrid bike, and I think I'll stay with that for the time being. No sense spending extra money on a road bike, right?

Here's a good site with some tips on bike training

Resource for beginner traithletes

Here's a cool site with information for beginner triathletes.

Looking for others if anyone has any good links.

Starting at the beginning

So I'm big, old and not an athlete. But I'm going to do a triathlon next spring. Why do you ask? Well there are a number of reasons.

First, I was inspired by my daughter, who will be 9 next month. She's already done two triathlons. Her first was last year. She didn't know how to ride a bike until June, then did her first triathlon in August. She was seventh out of eight, but she did beat a boy. This year she did much better and finished 15 out of 35 in her age group. So she has inspired me.

Next, I just want to feel good and be fit. I'm past middle age now, so I want to stay fit and healthy so I can live longer. Plus I don't want to always be the big, fat, out of shape guy.

Finally, I want to do a triathlon because it's there. My friend who climbed Mt. Everest this spring always uses that.

So join me on my journey. And if you have any suggestions, I'm open to anything.