enginerd's Group - FULL (Page 11)

Gail, you don't know?!?!?  How about you went through surgery and rode that fine line of getting back to training but not over-doing it?  It seems that it would be very easy in that situation to either a) go back to training too quickly or too hard and reverse some (maybe all?) of the good from the surgery.  or b) get lazy while recovering and not go back with such obvious motivation like you did.  Even if you don't see it, I think I can speak for everyone and say we're very proud of you.

Jon, you definitely deserve to pat yourself on the back, you've earned that and more.  Your swimming truely is impressive, especially getting up before dawn to get it done.

Donato, your running really is impressive ...so is your cycling.  Yeah, basically looking at your training logs is just impressive.  I really like what you said about having fun in your training.  I have to find a way to do that.

Me - I'm most proud that I found a way to move my family back to CA.  I didn't think that would be possible for someone that barely graduated high school, never went to college and was lucky enough to find one job where I could afford to start a family in the first place.  Tri-wise - I'm just glad I'm still training, not as much as I should/want to be but I'm still training.  And even though I'm making trips to Cali with a truck full of stuff on 4/6 and 5/4 I'm still doing my triathlon on 4/22.  I'll be slow and it will hurt but I don't care, I plan on finishing with a big smile on my face!

My next three months?  I'll be trying to stay sane, just like Jeff's blog says.  Moving my family to a different state, selling my house, starting a new job in a new industry all the while still training!!! 

I must be nuts.

Hey, everyone, while we are talking about successes, I want to add a shout-out to Andrea and Lesley-Anne, who, in case you all don't know, happen to be the training/life partners of Donato and Jon.  Andrea's matching long Donato's bike workouts and will join him on the 600-mile Lifecycle ride, which is no easy route, let me tell you; I know firsthand!  And Lesley-Anne not only is training for the same half-iron that Jon is training for (as well as the dus, the sprints, and the Olys), but she also is a BT logger and member of a different mentor group, which is of course not as great as ours, but don't tell her that!    (She will probably respond to that herself...)

And, of course, during our time together so far, Richard became a triathlete, and Jason has kept off the cigarettes, in addition to all the other great successes that everyone has had!  Next we need to teach Gina to change a flat tire fast enough that she still stays ahead of her husband and to find Jeff a wonderful job near his current one so he doesn't have to find a new swim team for his up-and-coming triathletes.

Thanks for such a lovely compliment!  All those years as a teacher, I guess!

I am heading out for Boston in the morning, followed by a visit to the parentals in Pittsburgh.   Hope to keep up my rehab/back-to-fitness training while I'm gone!

Awesome news Richard!!   You've already got some contacts in socal so that would be great but I definitely hear you on the lower cost of living being attractive.  Well I guess having to decide between the two is a good problem to have.

Congratulations!!!

Hey, guys -- most of you know from my logs, but I have officially been discharged by my surgeon.  I still have some nerve issues in my left leg (he says they should resolve within a year) and some stitch issues in the right leg, not to mention the long scars, but I now can only blame my lack of speed on my training, which I am slowly building up, according to the plan from "my" wonderful coach.  I will need to correct some of my gait issues and build up different muscles, after all these years with this disorder, and it is hard not to do too much since nothing really hurts anymore, but all in all I am on the right track, so to speak.

Anyway, special thanks to all of you for being so supportive while I have been largely sidelined and/or consigned to a cheerleader/backseat driver role.  It has been really really helpful to know that you were all reading my daily reports and cheering for me, too!

I'm hoping the doctor will clear me to race......that would be a big time bummer!

How is everyone?

I did it!!!  (Well, 2/3 of it)

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=73250&posts=1&start=1

Hey, gang, word on the street is that the January mentor program is officially "over," so I wanted to take this time to thank our fearless leader Donato for getting us together and making a place for us to find new friends.

Some of the mentor groups are full of training advice with tons of techno talk, others went entirely silent on the forum lines as well as in the inspires.  Donato, you have done a great job being our friend and a role model rather than our task master or even our teacher, and I have much appreciated that (I would have lasted about one day with the mentor who told everyone in the group they had to go buy a HRM and report back regularly). 

I know I'm the only one of our group not yet racing this season, but I will ... thanks to all of you.  Know that if you're in the LA area you always have a place to stay for a few days (like before R's apartment is ready or after D/DW's Lifecycle ride). 

Hi everyone. After the AIDS ride, I stayed with a friend in LA and then had a chance to meet with Gail at a great coffee shop in Sierra Madre. It was great to meet her and talk live.  Here's a picture.

This next weekend, I'll get a chance to meet Jason at the tri for fun in Pleasanton. Hopefully, I'll get to meet Richard at Big Kahuna later this year. How cool is that?

Happy New Year everyone!

Overall I felt 2007 was a great year from a tri standpoint. It was my first year and now I am hooked. I am really pumped about 2008 and if I get to stay healthy it will be an awesome year. I feel our great group is one of the reasons 07 was such a good year. It's good to know someone will read your log and keep you under control. I have a tendency to over train so it has been good to have Gail keeping an eye on the volume. However, compared to Donato my volume is nothing so I guess it all depends on who you compare yourself too.

Now that I am working with a coach my training issues should be under control. My current hurdle is nutrition. More on that later...

I will keep logging this year and I hope the rest of the group will do so as well.

In peace,

Jon 

Hey all, I just saw that you guys had come back and done some updates. I'm a little late but will throw my two cents in as well.

I feel that 2007 was a great year. I went through a lot of non-tri related things and still found the time to complete quite a few races including my first Oly and my first HIM. I'm very proud of that.

Since October I've been dealing with a few physical issues but have been slowly working towards regaining some of my fitness and being able to consistently stick to a plan. I'll be doing a reverse sprint in a few weeks and then am considering doing an Oly and then HIM. I have signed up for an Oly in September.

I just wanted to say thanks to all of you for being so supportive over the last year. It is true that I joined a new mentor group, but I haven't felt quite as connected as I did last year. I'd still be more apt to come back here and catch-up.....

Cheers to everyone and happy training!