New things...New old things...Keep Life Exciting!

Whoa! What a summer it's been so far! Lots of things swirling around in my universe. I've had ups And downs, mostly ups though, so it's all good! As I write this I'm getting ready to travel to my second ever triathlon, this one on Saturday in Atlantic City. The triathlon isn't a "new" thing for me per se as I competed in my first last summer, however there will be new aspects this year. First being AC, I've never been there before, so I'm looking forward to checking out, from what I hear, a cool location. This event will have an open water swim, which I haven't done before (in a race) and have been told I may like better than the pool swim of last year. This event will also actually consist of two races; a sprint and olympic, meaning twice as many people competing as the Women's Philadelphia Triathlon I did last year. Wow! That's a lot of people! So a much bigger event. I'm excited, nervous, and focused all at the same time. I've worked hard all year, cause let's be honest, who really stops training after their last event? I know what my times should be, I know how my body should perform and how it should feel at the finish line. I have an idea of what the courses should be like and what the weather should be. These are all shoulds though, anything can happen and that's why I have a little nervous twinge. Currently I'm focused on all the logistics of getting there, parking, athlete check-in, the meetings, checking the bike in transition and figuring out all those courses and transitions once I see them in person. I'm reading, highlighting and re-reading the athlete guide. Watching Live Facebook events about the event and double checking my equipment and the equipment checklist. It's all a bit Santa Clause like, checking and checking again and we're two days out from leaving. 😮
I could have decided after last year's triathlon, that once was enough. That I'd set a goal, crushed it and could then move on to something else. (Kind of did move on with the half marathon I raced earlier this year, that's a previous story) I realized though that registering for another one gave me another opportunity to feel great about crushing a goal, kept me focused and motivated on my training and workouts and gave me something, quite frankly, fun to look forward to.
Which is what I think keeps life exciting and worth living. If you don't have goals to look forward to, then what do you have? This leads me to the new "new" things coming up in my life. Starting in September, I'll be teaching a couple of fitness classes at the Thomas Jefferson Community Center, part of the Arlington County Department of Parks and Recreation. I'm really looking forward to the opportunity to reach a whole new group of people and community with regards to health and wellness. I'm also excited by the prospect of gaining more experience in the world of fitness. Late last year I started on the subs list of the YMCA Anthony Bowen, here in DC and that's also been a fun way to get back into that gym culture. Things are happening! Yay!

Stay tuned, there will be some other changes happening on the horizon. Changes can be scary and exciting all at the same time, however change is ultimately good. Change challenges us. So here's to being challenged and keeping life exciting!

Now I'm signing off to go check and recheck all I need to know and do for my next adventure!

Yours in fitness and fun,

Lori