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This week I have been feeling a bit crapola.

Not tooooo bad … just … well, like I said, a bit crapola (must I repeat myself?).

It can’t be the alcohol because I don’t drink. I gave that up last year. It was not so much of a decision as it was a “cellular urging”. My body decided it didn’t like it anymore and made me make the drastic, potentially life-changing decision to stop drinking.

Some didn’t like it. But I did, and that’s all that mattered.

In the months and weeks prior to this big decision, I had been thinking about it. It was playing on my mind. But I just couldn’t bring myself to call it quits on the grog (not that I drank much anyway). Then I reached that wonderfully magical headspace – you know the one – where the tough decision all of a sudden become really really easy.

As I said, it wasn’t so much of a decision … I was compelled by my body.

In the last few weeks, and especially this week, I have had the same little nagging thoughts. It’s playing on my mind … and my stomach. It’s my diet.

It ain’t real flash. I have been consuming too much sugar, too much fat and not enough green leafy stuff. I think they call it “salad”. It might as well be a foreign word.

And water. Don’t get me started. I’m having a great deal of trouble getting in all the water I need to run my body smoothly each day, let alone exercise with any intensity.

I’m about to hit that magical headspace once again. I can feel it closing in on me. This time, I shall get a jump on it in two simple steps.

1. Remove emotion from my impending “challenging” decision. Check.

2. Make the decision. Check.

With diet so vital to survival and quality of life, it’s important I learn to manipulate it to my advantage. I also feel a level of guilt that I live in such a fortunate and nutritionally abundant country and, by eating rubbish, I am effectively choosing malnutrition. Just because it tastes nice. It’s body abuse, plain and simple.

It’s time to stop.

This week (and for the rest of the weeks of my life), I will be making a concerted effort to make better dietary decisions, choose better foods, choose to drink the water I need, choose the salad, choose the fruit, ditch the TimTams, ditch the Coke, ditch the chips, ditch the junk.

I feel better already.

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Last triathlon season has only just finished and my training for the next has begun. Being very unfit and inherently un-talented, I need all the training and practice I can get!

I’m two days into it. Thankfully, I’m not sick of it yet. Go me! If I can keep this up, there may just be some hope for me. Hmm … we’ll see! Either way, I think it’s going to be a long winter!!

In an effort to keep myself focused, I have set some season goals. I am familiar with the “goal-setting” concept, although I am not so familiar with the “goal-achieving” concept.

The first goal on my list comes around in October … it’s a little event we have down here in Tassie called “The Burnie 10″ (see the link in the sidebar on the left). It’s 12km … okay I’m joking, it’s 10km. I have run it more times than I care to remember (once I ran it in the hail on my birthday!) … maybe 10 or 12 times? Not sure. My PB is around 52mins. Set 50,000 years ago – when I was at high school. And fit.

My challenge, should I wish to accept it (and I do), is to kick 52mins’ arse. You heard me. It’s going down.

So yesterday I went for an easy run. And it was easy, I didn’t challenge myself to run fast – I just chugged along at a sustainable pace. The distance was 4.33km (hey, that 30m means a lot to me!). I got home in 28:54mins.

Riiiiiiiiiight.

My 10km goal is looking more than a little shaky. Yesterday’s run pace was 6:40m/km. 6:40! I could probably walk faster than that.

I have to admit, I’m very embarrassed.

So, can I go from 6:40 pace to less than 5:00 pace in seven months? Dunno, but I’m gonna find out.

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Lately my triathlon training has been more than a little hit-and-miss. Hey, I get busy okay?

But I can’t use that as an excuse. Basically, I’ve been lazy. I’ve been sleeping in, making excuses and sitting on the couch. Not good. I’ve been embracing the whole rest period concept.

Not anymore.

Next week marks the start of my prep phase. Base season is about to begin. And, being a newbie to the sport, I need all the training I can get. I need to swim, cycle and run. I need to drop weight. I need to learn skills.

I also need to believe I can do it. It’s been the missing link for a long time. But now it’s time to stop being a big-girl’s blouse and just get in a do what I need to do. I have goals that are begging to be achieved!

I’m pumped and ready to roll!

Got myself an indoor trainer a couple of weeks ago. It means I can train at home on the bike while my little guy has a sleep. It’s brilliant, if not a tad boring.

So here I go. A full base season leading into the next competitive season. I’ll blog about it. My goals, my training, my nutrition. It won’t always be pretty, it won’t always be positive, but it will be real.

Wish me luck.

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