Madison Half Marathon--5/30/10

It was February and I was deep in off-season base training. I had my whole race season mapped out with a half-marathon in May to kick it off, four or five triathlons (mostly sprints, one olympic), and maybe another half or full marathon in the fall. I had my standard goals to push me:

-20 MPH average in a race (on the bike, of course. Only cheetahs run that fast.)

-Nail that pesky mount (see Bigfoot for what not to do.)

-9 minute run miles

-Assess potential for Ironman Madison in 2011

Then one night my lobster and I got the phone call we'd been waiting for, and three hours later we're raising two tiny girls, 17 months old and 8 days old.

I didn't get to my 4-mile run that night.

I didn't work out for over two weeks since that night, thus beginning the life changes--a new job for my lobster, a new house, a new minivan, and a new tri bike. (I felt I deserved the bike for being an instant mom instead of the goal-seeking triathlete I was before. I then stored the (unridden) bike in our apartment shower stall for the first month after I bought it. No time to ride. See "instant mom".)

Somewhere along the way I said goodbye to my old goals. I didn't have the time or fitness to achieve them anymore. I've now put new goals in their place:

-Get out of the house and do a run, a bike or a swim once in a while so I don't get fat

-Be a person who can roll out of bed and do a triathlon without much training

-Share with the girls the exhilerating atmosphere of a race day morning

-Role model an active lifestyle in hopes of motivating the same in my young 'uns

Despite cutting my workout regimen by 90% or so, I showed up to the first race on the schedule, the Madison Half Marathon.
I told my fan club not to expect much, and Lobster just asked that I not injure myself attempting to finish this thing. It's not easy to set aside speed for a finish. I was never that fast to begin with, but as I plodded along for mile after mile, I hadn't realized how slow I'd gotten. Nevertheless, I finished. And for the time being, that will have to be good enough.

P.S. I'd be more than happy to post pictures of my cute kids instead of my rode-hard mug, but alas...foster care rules prevent it. Soon, I hope.