Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Lessons Learned Over Thanksgiving

A number of lessons were learned..some good some bad.

1.  My newly turned 5 year old is smarter than her parents.  Bought her the Elf on the Shelf and she explained to us it was fake and the we would need to get up at night to move it...But that since we got up so early for work she could move it for us.

2.  Whenever your wife goes into the dressing room to try things on and two hot/sleazy 20 somethings also start trying things on at the same time..nothing good can happen.  No matter how good your wife looks in whatever she is trying on she is going to say it looks hideous.  Best to just run and hide instead of hanging around holding the purse.

3.  I am old...I played Halo on our newly bought Xbox and became nauseous within 20 minutes..and ended up quitting after 25 minutes...

4. I am old...I played doubles volleyball for the first time in three years and was horrendous..out of breath and hurt my knee.   I hate the Xbox.  And our living room is too small for a volleyball court.

5. I should not have bought an Xbox for my 5 year old.  My ego is going to take a beating.

6. I am having real issues again with food.  I need to just shut it off.  I like fast food and eating out..yes I am probably addicted to the salt.  I know that most nutritionists etc..say don't count your calories but I need to..at least to get me jump started again.  Jen has me logging on Spark People to keep track of everything I eat.  So far I do not like what I am seeing.

7. Food that you eat while preparing your meals counts towards your calorie intake..who knew? I figured that when I was shredding cheese for tacos that the block of cheese I ate while shredding did not count.

8. This time of year I enjoy shopping and buying triathlon gear more than I enjoy using it. Of course my wife did buy quite a bit of triathlon stuff for herself this year which is a change... But yet she does not understand the concept of your helmet having to match your jersey having to match your bike...

9.  It is best not to take your new camera out and go through all of the functions and play with it in your car in front of your kids school after you have dropped them off. 

10.  That anyone can get snippy during the xmas season...had a Costco sample person actually say.."free samples...for those who have not had 3 pieces already".  I took another two pieces of sausage anyway..

11.  There were some serious historical inaccuracies in Abraham Lincoln Vampire Slayer. 

12.  Red Box movies cost about the same as regular movies when you forget to return them for a couple of weeks.

13.  I hate Troy Aikman and Kirk Herbstreit equally.  Every time either one opens his mouth I just want to bash the t.v. in....which i should do in the near future since the price on new big screens is so low.

14. Every time a restaurant closes in Golden Colorado two Mexican restaurants open up. (Which ironically will help me stick to my eating plan since I will not eat out as much...if Dorito Taco is not on the menu I am not interested in Mexciacn food)

 15.  Apparently my foot injury is directly connected to the proximity of any upcoming race on my schedule thus explaining the issues I had before Barking Dog..Lookout Mountain and now Chilly Cheeks Duathlon on December 1.  Thus I will not let my foot know when I have scheduled a race from now on.  I am up and running again but the CC Duathlon is out..at least the December one. 

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

The secret to living healthy and being fit is.....

I have discovered the secret to fitness and living healthy.  What is it you ask?  Is it a gym membership? A new bike? A personal trainer? Jen as a coach?..sadly it is none of the above. If it was I would be in Ironman shape already.  Unfortunately the answer is something I do not have but have tried to encompass my entire adult life.  The answer is...Organization.  Yes..the "O" word. 

Since the beginning of my 30 day experiment I have struggled on some days and on other days I have hit every goal both nutritionally and training wise.  After looking at my logs I can see one common denominator in both my failures and successes..the degree of organization.

I have hit my nutrition goals on the days I packed a lunch the night before as well as planning out dinner and having my blender set up for the morning smoothies.  On days I have not done this I have either skipped breakfast or had something which was not as nutritious.  If I didn't pack a lunch I tended to stray from the healthy foods to the convenient ones.

On days I have hit my training goals I have packed my gym bag the night before after checking that everything I need has been packed and stowed.  Obviously losing my shoe and underwear was one of the days that I did not have everything stowed away.  I also made it to the pool one day and realized that I had my suit and towel..but no goggles.

Since the secret to fitness is organization..I might as well quit now.  It is a battle I will never win.  I have bought book upon book telling me how to get organized..but I have not been able to find them in a while.  I have bought journals to keep track of things..but one is too big and another is too small..so I had two journals..then three and then four..each with a day here or there in them.  just tracking my workouts has been a nightmare..should I use the log on beginner triathlete? Sure..but training peaks has better heart rate information..I'll use that instead..wait garmin connect is an easy download and no ads..but the log on attackpoint has pretty graphs....just ask my coach..she has no idea where the hell my logs are.  Ok..they are actually on attackpoint because of the pretty graphs..although I do link to garmin connect. 

I spent 3 hours the other night just putting all of my finances in Quicken..promising myself I would keep every receipt...so far I have a couple of receipts crumpled up in my wallet and  nothing entered. The only reason I can function at work is I have one paralegal whose entire existence revolves around me staying organized. 

Don't even ask me about race days...When I raced Ironman Wisconsin I almost had a panic attack..I had to have my run bag..bike bag..run special needs bag..bike special needs bag..I was a freaking wreck.  I checked..then double checked then triple checked each bag.  In the end I just bought four of everything I could possibly need and put one in each bag.

You can ask my training partner Doreen about our rides and runs..I spend 15 minutes going through the mess in the back of my truck looking for shoes...helmets..gloves..whatever I actually need I cannot find. However I am able to find everything else.  For some reason I always find underwear.  I think I have a phobia about underwear..True story..when I was 20 I had been working out at the gym and went to get dressed and had forgotten clean underwear. Thus, I put on my pants without underwear.  I then was driving on the county highway and got into a head on crash at 55 mph.  Although I hit my knee and head I refused to go to the hospital because I wasn't wearing underwear..My mother always warned me to have on clean underwear in case I got in an accident..and the day I do...no freaking underwear..Ever since then there is underwear in every car I drive in case of emergency.   I just hope I never crash my bike.

Thus I will keep on moving forward..although I now know that the odds are stacked against me.  One side note..I ended up going to the doctor because the foot was giving me issues again.  Did xrays and an MRI. Found that I have some ligament issues but nothing that requires more than a little rest and alleve. I was very happy knowing there were no gout related issues or a stress fracture.  Unfortunately my wife had an MRI done the same day and has to have surgery for a meniscus tear. She will not be able to run for 6 weeks after surgery..the bright side is I may be able to catch up with her running wise by the end of January..woo hoo!!

Also please remember small business Saturday when buying presents this year.  If you need help getting me a gift may I suggest the Scott 29er

It even has my name on it


And to make it easy just talk to Ryan at Kompetitive Edge.  They are now carrying Scott bikes and he will make sure to hook you up with the size I need.

Take care everyone.

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Found my shoe!

Days 10 and 11.

Monday - Day 10 of this 30 day excersize in futility. 

Nutrition: Smoothie in the morning, greek yogurt for snack, roast beef and cheese sandwich for lunch (with veggies), sub sandwich for dinner with veggies and no mayo. baked chips and hummus for snack during game.  I am eating better overall but definitely too much. I think I am also eating calories that just don't register. A handful of cereal when I make it for my daughter in the morning. or a bite of her sandwich.. I have also been drinking a ton of milk lately..walking by the fridge grabbing the gallon jug and drinking..Probably should be counting those calories since we are going through a gallon every two days.  The milk must be taking the place of the soda I am not drinking.  I am drinking more water though.   I think I may have to actually count calories just to get a handle on how much I am eating.

Training: Ran today without any problems..except that pesky feeling of being obese and out of shape.  Other than that..zero problems. Foot actually felt great.

The Good..I found my other shoe that has been missing!!

The Bad:  I made one last call to Ballys and yep..they had one red reebok in their lost and fond. So I go to pick it up at lunch.  I walk in and there is an attractive trainer behind the desk who is actually in her late 30s..early 40s.  I'm wearing a dress shirt and tie..have my head shaved and my contacts in..so I am feeling pretty fly for a pasty white guy.. I go up and tell her I called earlier and wanted to pick up my shoe.  She looks at me and smiles."yeah..I'm sexy and I know it"..she goes and gets the shoe and gives it to me.  She then says.."I was the one who found it..there was a pair of underwear with it but I didn't pick that up"  I probably turned beet red and all I could do was try to think which underwear I had in my gym bag and just hoped to God it was a clean pair.  I no longer felt fly..and wondered why she had to tell me this...She then said that they were laying in the parking lot.  What the heck..I walked to and from the parking lot at least two if not three times looking for the darn things the night I lost them.  My wife made the comment that I can't see any of the clothes on the floor at home..how the heck did I expect to see any laying on ground.

Tuesday - Day 11.

Nutrition Yogurt for breakfast, roast beef sandwich for lunch, 2 PBJ sandwiches for dinner with milk.  Obviously missing some veggies today.  I really need to get the veggies.  Actually felt more full today then I did on days I ate like a pig.

Training - Swam today at lunch.  I finally used the new Special Ops goggles at the pool.  The verdict?  These things rock.  They are polarized and made for outdoors but were fine vision wise inside.  They also fit perfect. I was concerned when I tried them on at the store since they fit kind of inside my eye sockets. I also have freakishly long eyelashes for a guy (girls used to want to put mascara on me in high school) and was afraid they would be bothered by the lenses..but no problem at all.  Definitely keepers.  And for those of you that are fashion conscious they come in a ton of colors. If you are interested you can order a pair from Kompetitive Edge online.  The one weird thing though.  Without my contacts I am blind. However with goggles on underwater my vision is almost perfect...With the Special Ops my vision was better than without contacts..but definitely not perfect..I wonder if it had anything to do with the polarization.  This does not affect me since when I swim outdoors I always have contacts in anyway.

One serious note.  Please be a defensive driver whether it be in your automobile or on your bike.  My brother and sister in law were driving back home after watching the Badgers kick the crap out of the Hoosiers at a local establishment in their town when they were hit by a car driven by a teenage girl.  The witnesses said that the girl had the music cranked up and was "rocking out" at the light right before she ran the next light.  Everyone was fine after the accident..but it does show how quickly something can happen..even when you are in the right.


Take care everyone and remember to keep track of your shoes..and underwear.

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Days 6-9..you win some..you lose some(but not enough).

Days 6-9

Day 6
Hmm. Thursday..Stayed the course nutrition wise and had 45 minutes on the elliptical. Went to the rec center at lunch.  Felt like an adult when I brought my own  bar soap in a plastic container from home instead using the gym "foam". Didn't feel so adult like when I dropped the container and the top piece slid 3 stalls over to where the only other guy in the locker room was taking a shower.  Now this a a predicament...To avoid a Larry Craig incident I decided to forgo the cover.  Now I have to buy a new  bar of soap and container.  The guy actually came out of the stall later with the cover and asked me if it was mine..um no.  WTH I was the only other guy in there..freaking poltergeists.

And one note on the elliptical..it was less than spectacular.  Instead of saving my knees I almost blew one out by thinking I could reverse direction on it after I had gotten some good forward momentum going.  I guess I should get on one of these more than once a year.  I also found out later in the afternoon that my calves did not like the machine at all.

One good note. Had my daughter's first parent/teacher conference. Started by the teacher saying..Yeah there is really nothing to discuss...no behavior issues..no learning issues..no social issues.  Obviously my daughter has really learned how to manipulate people..good for her!  Just the night before she was singing in the shower..."I'm running through the sand..I know I'm in Iran..we're going to kill whose in command..we will.. we will.. rock you.."

Day 7
Friday- Nutrition was good.  Smoothie for breakfast, salad with grilled chicken for lunch and tilapia for dinner.  Also put together a dresser from IKEA..Thus I worked on my mental toughness.

Workout at lunch..lifting and some cardio on the stationary bike.  Was supposed to run but the calves said..no.

Day 8

Saturday - We will call this our FREE day.  Ugh.  Company meeting in the morning..snowing...stress...Breakfast was donuts and juice....mcdonald's for lunch..yeah mcdonald's..2 plain cheese burgers and a filet o' fish..and fries. You want to see what kind of damage one hideous mistake can do to your diet check out the nutrition content of what I ate. My mcdonald's meal   What is truly amazing is the calories and fat content yet almost no Vitamin A or C. The only saving grace is that I did not order the large coke like I would normally do and I took the tartar sauce off.  That was pretty much my nutrition for the day..except for the Godzilla and Purple Haze I had that evening at the bar. To say Saturday was a disaster was an understatement.  However it just reinforced that I am a stress and boredom eater.

Pretty much the only good thing on Saturday was I fought every urge in my body to stop at Taco Bell and get a couple of Doritos Tacos and a XXL Nacho at 10:00 p.m.  Instead I went home and had some water and went to bed.  There is just something about alcohol that gets you craving for taco bell "food"



Day 9
Sunday - Veteran's day and Football day.



PBJ for lunch and eggs with veggies for dinner.  I did have a couple of slices of bacon and an english muffin but I think I was ok calorie wise.  I also did munch on pretzels during the game and some peanut butter.  Luckily the pretzel bag was almost empty. when I began.  I did miss breakfast which is not good.

Workout - Bike heart rate test on the trainer. I hate the trainer.  Things go numb. Important things.  OK they used to be important back in the day.  I was supposed to go all out for 8 miles.  Warmed up for 2 miles and then did the test.  I was probably too conservative on the test since my legs were hurting and I did not want to fall apart completely before the end.  For some reason I also find it very hard to get my heart rate up on a bike unless I am climbing or on the mountain bike. Thus I started at a very high cadence of 95 to 105 rpm..but couldn't get the hr up. When I mashed the gears towards the end the HR sky rocketed.

The wind tunnel


Here are my bike test results..Waiting for coach to tell me what it means.

I did step on the Scale today and it did register 222 which is 3 pounds down in 9 days.  If I would just stick to the nutrition plan I think it would be down a few more pounds. 

Still have not found the shoe.

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Days 4 and 5

Day 4 - Did not go as planned. Missed my spinning workout and had to go out to lunch with business colleagues.

The good.  Breakfast - had my smoothie and it kept me filled. Lunch - even though I ate out I ordered water and a cobb salad. I even went so far to get a light vinaigrette dressing as opposed to the Ranch or French I usually get. Ok - I usually do not get French dressing. They apparently do not carry it at restaurants in Colorado because I like it.  You can get a freaking marijuana brownie in this state but you can't get French dressing.. Dinner was cereal and toast..not the best choice since there was no protein to speak of.  Also did not need all of those carbs before bed.

Another good. Jared at  Kompetitive Edge hooked me up with some new goggles to replace the ones that gave me such a problem.  I got the Tyr Special Ops.  They are polarized so I can use them for outdoor swimming..in about 6 months.  I have not tried them in the pool yet but they did awesome driving around town today..may just use them instead of my regular sun glasses.  I kind of looked like Vin Diesel in Pitch Black..if Vin had been sick for six months..lost all his muscle mass and then tried to recoup it with frequent trips to taco bell for the Doritos Tacos.


And yes..I did buy them because they were Badger colors.  That is just the way I roll.

Being it was election day Jared and I discussed our opinions and agreed that this country was lucky no matter who was elected since both candidates were immensely qualified for the job.  We also both wanted to tell all our facebook friends thank you for the enlightened and informative political posts they have been putting up the last 6 weeks.  Neither of us knew that Romney was going to actually require all women to register their uterus with the federal government...nor that Obama will require all working Americans to physically sign over their checks to welfare recipients at the end of each week.  I could have been so uninformed if it weren't for facebook.

I got home to watch the election and was reminded by my 4 year old daughter..Ink Masters is on tonight.  Which is weird since she is not allowed to watch the show.  What is even weirder is my addiction to it since I do not have any tattoos nor would ever get one and have no idea why anyone would want one.  I think I like the watching it because every one of the "artists" is a train wreck in some way or another.  And who doesn't like a show where a guy has to tattoo a girl with a bird shooting flames out of her....  Yeah there was a lot of blurring going on during that episode.

(This is a long way of saying..I missed my spinning workout)

The bad..missed my spinning workout and didn't tell Jen. 

Day 5 (Wednesday)

Missed breakfast..however when I got to work I stole someones yogurt out of the fridge and ate it.  I then went and taped the cover back on the yogurt container and put it back in the fridge.  Also went out to lunch to discuss business..Had another salad (grilled chicken and veggies) and water.  Yeah..apparently I am turning into "that" guy.  Pretty soon I'll be driving a Prius. Dinner was after I worked out and consisted of cottage cheese..with fruity cheerios in it.  (I did not have any real fruit readily available so used the next best thing)

I went to Ballys after work to run on the treadmill.  I love Ballys..the personal trainers are usually either looking at themselves in the mirror or helping the "hot" chick in the class with her lunges as the fat guy hyper-extends something resulting in a bone that begins protruding in an area it shouldn't.  There is no shortage of entertainment at that place.  And while I was on the treadmill I watched one particular guy doing the weight machines.  He did exactly 2 sets of exercises on 2 different machines during the 45 minutes I ran.  However he did manage to scare off 3 different women working out in the same area.  I don't know why..I thought the wife beater t-shirt and orange and blue zubaz were rockin.

My nutrition was not horrible today but could have been better.  The running and lifting went well.

The Bad today.. I lost one of my new shoes.  I packed it this morning but when I got to the gym there was only one shoe in the gym bag.  Luckily my truck is a pig sty and I had two other pairs of shoes in it..so I walked out of the gym in my socks..grabbed another pair of shoes and did my workout.  I was tempted to walk around the gym in my one red crosstrainer but figured the reference to the 80s Tom Hanks movie would be too obscure for most.  Thus instead of laughing at the obvious joke people would have just pointed at the pathetic old guy with one red shoe. 

I still have no idea where my shoe is.


Monday, November 5, 2012

Day 3..whoops.

Ok Day 3 started out well. Actually had a good breakfast. Made a smoothie with spinach, protein powder, cherries, raspberries, blueberries and skim milk that actually tasted pretty good and kept me pretty satisfied for the morning.

Pre-blended. Actually tasted pretty darn good.


Morning snack was a greek yogurt and fruit. Lunch was a roast beef and cheese sandwich on whole wheat..(I did miss an opportunity here to add veggies to the sandwich)  Dinner was chicken breast and salad with peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers.

If that was all I ate it would have been a good day.  Unfortunately a woman walks into our office this afternoon from the Texas Roadhouse carrying warm dinner rolls and cinnamon butter.  You have to be kidding me..I did not go out to eat for lunch so people are now bringing the food to me.  Not only that but she hands me coupons for free lunch and free appetizers.  Is this some kind of sick cosmic joke?  Did Jen hire this woman to tempt me? The Texas roadhouse is near our office and we have always wanted to try it..but it was never open for lunch.  Guess what..next Monday they are open for lunch.  Ok..I had one dinner roll with the cinnamon butter..and it was divine...the only thing that kept me from having 3 or 4 more is knowing I would need to write it on this blog... I also gave my free coupons away.

I did get home and had a fun size kit kat..(That darn candy is still in the house) and had half a pita and hummus in front of the football game.  Thus there were a few setbacks today.  However I was able to limit the "bad" which I usually do not do.  So I would give myself a "C" for today as far as nutrition.

However..I have now gone 3 days without soda and without eating out.  Those are huge for me.

I also got my short workout in today. 30 minute swim at the pool. I tried my new TYR Nest Pro goggles and they worked like crap. Unless they are supposed to let water in..then they worked awesome. I knew I was in trouble when the straps barely fit around my head.  I got back to the office to check on the model..and after I found them I read the description..."Inspired by that unique bird nest architectural design of Beijing's main stadium for 2008."  I ain't no engineer.. so I have to ask.... why are my swim goggles designed after Red China's greatest propaganda spectacle of the last 50 years?  Is that why they were poorly constructed?  Needless to say I will be heading to the store to buy another pair of goggles.. It was nice to get back to the swim locker room again though...there is just something about the smell of ben gay and talking to the nude 90 year old guy with one leg up on the bench  that really makes you feel alive. 


Sunday, November 4, 2012

Day 2 in the books

Second day and although not easy it was not that difficult to make the right decisions.  Weekends are where I can get the workouts in but usually go way off nutrition..while weekdays I have problems getting the workouts in but in theory nutrition should be good.

Nutrition today. Bfst: eggs, peppers, ham, cheese.  Now I usually like cheese in my scrambled eggs..however to get any taste I drop in about a half cup of cheddar.  Thus a ton of calories.  Just started using Laughing Cow low fat creamy swiss. Only 35 calories per wedge.  Also, I can use one small prepackaged wedge and it adds enough taste for 3 eggs.  woo hoo.  Win.
Dinner was a salad and lightly breaded tilapia.  Usually Sunday nights are cream cheese pepperoni pizza with cheese bread and possibly wings....so again..win.  Actually had a greek yogurt as a snack.  And still was able to stay away from the Halloween candy..which is leaving the house tomorrow.

Workout..A little over 90 minutes on the bike. Rode with my wife down clear creek trail.  Two things I learned on this ride. One,  I have lost my bike fitness (which shouldn't be a surprise since I have hardly been on it since the end of August.) and two, my wife is going to kick my butt in the duathlon we have coming up in December.

Beautiful weather for a November ride
And Angela...Great question..what does eating clean mean? I think it depends on who you ask and what they are following.  Obviously a vegan and someone following the Paleo diet are going to have different definitions.  The way I define eating clean is following whatever diet/nutrition plan that you have embarked on.  Thus, eating clean for me would mean making choices where Jen does not smack me upside the head.  Eating clean for the people I work with would mean trying not to get their food down the front of their shirts...which we all know isn't ever going to happen.

I think I have a lot of leeway on my nutrition plan. Just make better choices at this point.  The two corn dogs I had for breakfast a couple of weekends ago was labeled a bad choice by Jen. Thus that will not happen again.  I am also trying to stay clear of white flours and carbs as well as anything deep fried.  And no diet soda...which I can say I have been free from for 2 days.

OH and congratulations Angela on your  triathlon finish!! Can't wait to race with you next year.

Hope everyone has a wonderful week.

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Day 1

Ok..made it through the first day.

Completed workouts as scheduled.  30 minute slow run on the treadmill to test the foot out. Went well and I think I can actually start running again.  Actually did some walk/run to make sure nothing was tweaked. 30 minutes of strength training also done and in the books.

mud room which will be the treadmill/spinning center for the next few months.

Nutrition wise..did well for the most part.  Eggs, spinach and Canadian bacon.  Lunch was roast beef/ham/cheese with spinach on whole wheat and cottage cheese. Dinner was grilled chicken on a pita with a piece of cheese and spinach.  I did fall off the wagon by sneaking some of the kid's mac'n'cheese at dinner. Also had about 10 baked chips with salsa.  Obviously the last two were not clean eating.  But I will take this for a first day.  It actually helped knowing I was going to publicly log all of this.  I was amazed that I was able to keep away from all of the kit kats and peanut butter cups that are floating around the house.

Wt. this morning 225.  I also put a link to my new log on the left side of this blog..just in case you want all of the actual numbers etc.  Just click on the graph and it will take you to the log.

Tomorrow - Easy Bike Ride  1.5 to 3 hours
Monday - weights and cardio
Tuesday - swimming and spinning.

Friday, November 2, 2012

30ish Day Challenge

So November is here.  The time of year I usually hibernate on the couch watching football and stocking up on my Doritos and pizza for the year.  So far I have been somewhat successful at not allowing this to happen..I said somewhat. I have actually been eating fairly clean this week (actually had a spinach smoothie which tasted pretty darn good) but had some setbacks. (mostly the funsize variety)

Therefore I am embarking on the 30ish day challenge to get me through November. Everything I do is ish..I'll be there at 8ish...I weigh 200ish..my run time?  an hour or two ish...swam 2000 yards ish (or maybe 500).   And that is part of my problem..I need to just do..and not doish?  How many tacos did you eat? ..umm 5ish...  

It will start Saturday November 3 and go through December 8.  November is a bad month for a number of reasons..the weather is colder, thus I can start wearing sweaters and sweatshirts to hide my girth..it starts off with 8 lbs of candy in the home from Halloween... Football is on five days a week..its dark out...Thanksgiving..holiday parties..and the list goes on.  November and December also tend to be extremely stressful work months.. All of this adds up to weight gains of 15 to 20 pounds during the holidays the last two years which starts Jan. 1 off on a bad note.

The challenge for me is simple..I will blog my workouts and nutrition everyday.  I know from past experience that I am more apt to perform if there is a negative or public humiliation involved rather than a perk or positive.   I am also aware that I can't "make small sustainable" changes like everyone preaches.  You can have one can of soda a week...yeah..that ain't happening. I either kick the habit completely or the one soda will very quickly turn into ..one container of soda..maybe a two liter..maybe a half barrel. I also need to get back in the habit of logging my workouts and nutrition..I have been terrible the last two months. Jen is about ready to kill me over this... Another thing I know about me is that I am a creature of habit..both good and bad and 30ish days is enough to establish new habits.

Once I get the ok from coach I plan on putting a race on the schedule for this time period. Just something simple. Maybe a 5k.  Need to see how much fitness I have lost since I have had yet another foot injury.  If it keeps up I see a trip to the ortho in my near future. I am also going to talk with coach about throwing in some fitness tests in the next week or two ..just to see how low my starting point is..run..bike..swim...bench press etc.. 

I have also been told by my wife if the 30ish day challenge is not completed successfully (according to the standards set forth by coach) I will lose a space in the garage for one of my bikes and possibly a bike.  Now that hurts.

UPDATE - Coach just told me I am doing the Chilly Cheeks Duathlon on December 1.  Better register.  I think my wife will also register ..just to beat me.