Introduction

My husband and friends have been encouraging me to start a blog about triathlons, training, life and how to balance it all for over a year.  When my son was born, they pressed more, ensuring that I would find my voice as a new mom and triathlete.  I thought, I have 6 weeks off work, I'll just blog in my spare time and get a good start before I have to go back to work.  Perfect.  Little did I know that spare time doesn't exist when you have a newborn.  

My son is 10 weeks old, and I still don't have spare time, but I do think that my realistic view and story of how I get back into racing triathlons will resonate with others.  Whether you're about to be a first time mom, have young children, or children are well out of the house;  Whether you're new to triathlons, seasoned triathlete, or just a mom wanting to know what worked for me, triathlete or not; this blog is for you.  I'll do my best to retrace the last 10 weeks, as I found my path very different from what I expected.

I'll start with my post-pregnancy journey, but also include my past experiences as well.  I've been racing in triathlons for 6 years.  Last year I didn't race at all as I was pregnant, but I trained with my husband as long as I could and enjoyed being a spectator at his races.  I completed an Ironman in September 2011, so yes, I am one of 'those people', and I am a bit addicted to the sport. That being said, I believe that everyone has a different starting place, and everyone has different goals.  My hope is to be able to reach everyone where they are in their life, right now.  If your goal is to walk around the block every day this summer, awesome, get off the couch.

I know that in order to be the best Mom I can be, I need to race.  I love it.  I love training for a goal and completing it when race day is over.  I love that you can still have a successful day even if you don't cross the finish line.  When you set goals just a wee bit past where you think you can go, you find fantastic strength within and grow as a person.  And to officially have my goal out in cyber world for all to see; I plan to race a Half Ironman distance race in September, with some other races sprinkled in before as preparation.  There I said it.  I still haven't paid for the race yet, but admitting to you all is a step in the right direction.  I'm not really sure what this blog will become.  It will evolve as I embark on this new title of Mom AND triathlete. 

I feel I should add a disclaimer for anyone who is thinking of doing their first triathlon - It won't be your last.