it fits perfectly...

Not sure if you remember what I listed as one of my goals for 2011, but I've officially gone nutso and have committed myself to completing a triathlon THIS YEAR. After 2.5 years of listening to Ryan's friends and family go on and on and on about their hobby/obsession, I've decided to see what the hype is all about.

Now, I've NEVER had an athletic bone in my body. In fact, I signed up for softball only because I wanted to practice throwing/catching the ball with my dad in the backyard like he did with my brother over and over again. Turned out I was not cut out for a future in sliding shorts. I much preferred making flower necklaces in the outfield.

So, I've just never though I would be the racing type. Until the Nelson clan came into my life. I bucked it for quite some time, but secretly wished I had the stamina to at least complete a race. And after a lot of doubting myself, I decided to go for it.

No worries though, my first race isn't until October. So you are probably thinking, then why are you preparing so early?? Ummm to answer your question quickly: because I have ZERO skills at any of the three sports involved. NONE. And I really hope to not embarrass myself with my finishing time.

So, to jumpstart the training, Ryan enlisted one of my co-workers who used to be a swim coach. She so graciously agreed to coach me in at least the swim portion. Some of you may be thinking, how hard can it be to swim? And that is exactly what I thought. Well, my friends, its not easy. In fact, yesterday after my first session, I called Ryan very angrily and said "I hate you and I want to die." Of course, he laughed because he knew exactly the way I felt. I felt like my legs were jello and like I was going to blow chunks at any moment. Neat.

Want to know what is even cooler?

This hot swimsuit...
Never did I think I would drop $60 on a ONE PIECE. Not to mention how DISGUSTING it looks on. Mauri (my coach) helped me pick it out because I clearly had NO CLUE what to get. She warned me that it would be close to impossible to get on because they are meant to fit VERY tightly. When I asked her if it was normal to feel like my circulation was being cut off, she said, "it fits perfectly!" Neat.

And to top of this insanely attractive get up, these guys made an appearance...

So I completely lost all respect for myself when I saw my reflection in the mirror. Enter the second guessing. But I wasn't going to give up without at least giving it a try. So after about 3 laps, I wanted to literally DIE. Gasping for air doesn't even begin to describe the flopping whale scene I made in the pool. Here I am beyond humiliated that my co-worker had to see me looking like the biggest tool alive, now she sees that she will need to actually charge Ryan for her services. I may be over exaggerating a tad. 2 hours later, I actually felt like I wasn't about to drown.

So clearly, I have TONS of work to do. And what scares me even more is that this is only 1/3 of the training I have to do. I'm not worried. I have months to get there. And I will tell you this, I am actually able to move today. That will probably change, however, once I finish my training session with my trainer Therman aka Thermometer.

So, yes. I've officially lost my mind. Any laughs, encouragement, "you're crazy," etc. is greatly appreciated!