Please Keep the Laughing to a Minimum

My sister-in-law, Julie, recently invited/challenged me to join her in a sprint triathlon in June...

okay you can stop laughing now...

enough...

I haven't worked out on a regular, on going basis, since high school...

(um, that was 15 years ago!)...

Julie's reason for doing this was to help her get into shape after the birth of her first baby, Natalie, who's 7 months old...

well, I have a baby bump...

that's um...

4 1/2 years old

(if you're counting my youngest, it's 9 yrs old if you're counting the first one!)...

I have NEVER done anything like this in my life,

but I feel it's time to challenge myself and do something that scares the heck out of me.  And I think having a few friends join me in the challenge/torture might help motive me even more.

Julie is trying to get a group of women interested in joining, and then she can sign us up as a group, not sure when the deadline is...

So, here's a bit more about the race:

*It's sponsored by Mermaid and it's for women only.

*Date of race is June 6, location still TBD (Bay Area).

*Distances: 400m swim, 10 mile bike, 2.5 mile run (in that order)

*Option to do run, bike, run for those who don't want to swim

*Can enter competitively or "for fun" -- I will enter as "for fun". If you want to enter competitively, you'll be placed with other women in your age group and will start at a different time than the "for fun" group.

*It's okay to walk the run; lots of women do. I will plan to run.

*There is a fee. I think you can get a discount if you have a group. Don't sign up before letting me know. Julie would like to try and enter as a group if we have enough people interested. Feel free to invite your friends, too!

Julie made a list of reason's it's crazy for her to do this...

my list of why I CAN'T do this...

*I'm out of shape

*I don't own a bike

*my body is NOT built for running

*I might just make a fool of myself

*I might not finish

*my body is NOT build for a swimsuit (or wet suit for that matter)

*I'm not a good swimmer and feel silly when I do

*I'm way too busy

*I left my walking/running shoes at my in-laws over Christmas

*I weigh...

yeah, did you think I would actually blog my weight?!

but I will post a "Pre-Training" picture of me...so you can understand the full weight (yes pun intended) of what this challenge will be to a girl my size!

Reason's I NEED to do this

*I'm out of shape

*I need to do something that scares me

*I'm 33 and only getting older

(blog edit...oops...I'm 32 not 33, my OLDER sister had to point that out to me!)

*my kids deserve a healthy mom

*my husband deserves a healthy wife

*I deserve a healthy me!

I'm going to start training today.

-Going out to buy some new walking/running shoes.

-Going to order me a sports bra for this body that's not built for running, (if you also need "special support" visit www.herroom.com they have sports bras for those of us with running challenged bodies!)

-I will be walking/running around my block.

-looking for a bike on craigslist...and researching the web for rules of the road (do I need a helmet?)

-get a partner (or two... or ten) to join us. It would be fun to have as many people as possible! Julie's even thinking of making a website where we could all blog/post about how our training is going so that we can encourage each other.

Okay...I have now gone "blog public" with this challenge...

that means I really can actually fail...I have let people know that I'm going to do this...

what if I don't?!?

but the weird thing is...

I know I CAN do this. I will need lots of support.

It's going to take commitment and some creativity with my schedule, but it's so worth it!

Will you think about joining me on this adventure?

I understand if now is just not the right time for you -- but think about it.

I'll be excited to hear who will join us (my sister-in-law Julie and I) in this challenge for 2010!

out-of-shape-out-of-time,

Kiera