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Training Through The Holiday's

It is the favorite time of year for many people, but unfortunately it is also the most stressful. It seems as though every aspect of our life has become more stressful. There are work deadlines, holiday planning, shopping, visiting family and I haven't even started to mention 'everyday' life or training! There is so much to do, that it is easy to see why many people fall off the wellness wagon. It is important to remember that it doesn't have to be this way. I love the following quote for life in general, but especially when stress gets high! " Learn from the past, plan for the future, but live in the moment!" Continue to do what has worked in the past and avoid what hasn't. There is no sense in repeating things that don't work for you. Don't worry about how many chocolates you ate this morning at work, or that swim session that you missed earlier this week. Those moments are gone and only thing we can do is use knowledge from the past, to pl...

Off Season Officially Started!

I am now offically two weeks into my off season and it is a nice change of pace. Im still training every day, but usually just 1 or maybe 2 sessions per day. I'll most likely keep this rolling through the Thanksgiving weekend and then start to get back into things a little bit more in the following week. I wanted to thank everyone who came out to the Trek Bicycle Store Madison West location lastnight ! Seeing you forgo the opening of "New Moon" (unlike 26.3 million other American's) and attend the event really did mean a lot ;) In the end it was a huge success! We had a great time with food, drinks, music, a little silliness, along with the creation of more than a few holiday wish list's! Thank you also to all of the westside store employee's! You guys are awesome and always work very hard to make sure these things go extremely smooth! More to come soon...have to head out to ride and take advantage of this 55* November weather! Oh yeah, and it's N...

Ironman Florida

Both of the times I have raced Ironman Florida the water has actually looked like what an ocean is suppose to look like! Standing on the start line the horizon looked like a distant mountain range, rather than a smooth never ending sheet of blue-green glass. The gun went off and it was probably the least rough start to an Ironman I have had in a long time. We were all one big happy group out to the turn until we turned into the sun and left to deal with the 4ft swells. It seems that everyone decided to take their own line to the return leg of the loop. I tried to guess which set of feet to stay on so I could remain at the front of the group. Unfortunately, I guessed incorrectly and was in no man's land with a few other swimmers. I came out of the water in around 19th position and was quickly onto the bike with my good buddy Justin Daerr (JD). He and I trained in Clermont, FL together for a long time and as we rolled out I joked about how it felt just like old times. We w...

Believing In You!

I was going to write this post after Ironman Florida , but I had some time and thought that I would write it prematurely. Triathlon (Ironman) is not only a sport and a lifestyle, but it is something that we use to teach us more about ourselves. It is not about going fast for most athletes, but it is about setting off on a journey that we may or may not have thought we could complete. It is about showing ourselves that the so called "impossible," is truly possible. All we have to do is BELIEVE . For many athletes, it is not just about the racing. It might be about losing weight, or it might be about feeling confident in who we are, our self image or maybe showing ourselves that we can live a healthy lifestyle, when we never have. When I think about all these things, I think about change and I think about empowering ourselves to live better lives and become happier people. Don't take a back seat to life, go get it..."We create our own lives and happiness." ...

Panama City Beach Bound

It has been a while between updates, but I wanted to iron (haha) out the rest of the year before posting anything. I have decided to head down to Panama City Beach on November 7th to race Ironman Florida. After a season with a lot of success, I almost accomplished a great result at Ironman Wisconsin. I have great fitness and motivation, so I have decided to keep my season rolling before getting out the ski's and working on my IM in the pool! I raced IMFL back in 2006 and think that course suits me well. I am excited to get down there and will post another update before race day! +++++++++++++ Stay tuned for a new site coming soon and some more exciting news for 2010. Life is good! BB

Ironman Start #17..... Check!

2009 Ironman Wisconsin Race Report Ironman Wisconsin this year was Ironman start #17. I had a few goals for this race...which will follow. #1 - To be in the first chase pack. #2 - To NOT blow up on the bike. #3 - To race MY race. #4 - To WIN. Well, I scored 50% on this test, which would mean that had i taken any other test at any school i attended growing up, I would have failed miserably! But this was Ironman and while I was looking to ace this test, I was really just hoping for some solid steps forward...and that I did achieve! Here's how the day went down. Okay, race morning....I rolled into a super secret parking spot that I cannot reveal because it is always open on race morning. It is only 1 block from the start and if I told you I can guarantee I wouldn't be able to park there next year!! BTW - I heard about the spot from one of my athletes! Thank you Roz! As I am walking down to transition I am thinking to myself how quickly the year goes by. It seemed like only ...

Congratulations!

I will be posting a race report on my day at Ironman Wisconsin, but first I wanted to post a big shout out to all of you who had great races on Sunday. Chris and Justin on their 5th and 6th places, Becky on her 21minute PR, David Olive on his finish, Will on sticking it out to the finish, the other local and Timex athletes, in addition to all of my athletes who all had great days! Congrat's!! Colin G - 11:08 - PR Randy Y - 11:49 - PR Scott S - 11:55 - PR Jim G - 12:13 PR Lauren W - 12:36 PR Jon B - 12:59 PR Roz C - 13:38 *With The Flu Julie H - 15:27 PR Matt H - 15:27 PR Hope everyone is recovering well...enjoy it! Blake