2008 Season

I've been quietly registering for races for the 2008 Season this fall. I say quietly because my coach didn't want me to focus on next season until I had completed the NYC Marathon a few weeks ago. But registrations for popular races I was interested in doing opened before then and I had to jump in before they were sold out.

So as of now, this is what my 2008 season looks like, subject to change of course. Those in bold are races i've already registered for. The others I haven't cleared with my coach yet.

April 6 - More Half-Marathon in New York
May 4 - Broad Street Run (10-miler) in Philadelphia
May 18 - Columbia Triathlon (Olympic) in Maryland
June 8 - Cheasapeake Bay 1-Mile Swim in Maryland
June 22 - Philadelphia Triathlon (Olympic)
July 6 - Philadelphia Women's Triathlon (Sprint)
July 20 - New York City Triathlon (Olympic)
August 3 - SheROX Triathlon (Sprint) in Philadelphia
August 17 - Timberman 70.3 Aqua-Bike in New Hampshire
September 7 - Diamondman Triathlon (Sprint) in Delaware
September 21 - Philadelphia Distance Run (Half-Marathon)
September 28 - Cape Henlopen Triathlon (Sprint) in Delaware

As you can see, i've already committed to the big ones, and they're all roughly a month apart. So we'll see what my coach says about the others. As of right now, i'm injury free - which is HUGE! I spent an entire year training and competing while trying to rehab and manage my injury. But as my coach reminds me, and I know deep down, i'm not in the clear. I could continue to develop overuse running injuries. Alot of it stems from how I used my body as a dancer and the ramifications of all the pounding and use my ankles went through those 20 or so years. The flip side is, my dance background is aiding in my ability to be a fairly decent swimmer. I've been swimming for less than a year but I make noticable improvements almost every time I get in the water now. Notice that I haven't added a marathon to this list. I'm taking a break from marathons in 2008.

I have many goals for the future in regards to my athletic endeavors. I do want to complete an ironman one day. I do want to qualify for the Boston Marathon. I do want to compete in the Great Chesapeake Bay Swim 4.4 mile challenge. But these things aren't happening in 2008.

What I do want to happen in 2008 is:
1. Drop 20 pounds and get back into top form (i've gotten quite heavy during this injury year - it's time to shed these pounds for good!)
2. Stay injury free and get stronger!
3. Drastically improve on my Olympic triathlon times (i've only done 2 so far and both were over 3 hours long. I should easily be able to break the 3 hour mark - the majority of doing this is mentally preparing myself for these races)
4. Prepare myself to tackle full half-ironmans in 2009 (hence starting with the Aqua-bike portion this year at Timberman)

I had a 2 week off-season (after the NYC Marathon) before my coach started putting more workouts on my schedule for base training for next season. That started last week. Unfortunately, this base training hasn't gottten off the ground just yet as i've been sick for well over a week now. It's very frustrating...so the off-season has actually been extended to a month now. I'm optimistic that i'll be able to get back to it next week.

I'm very excited to focus on next year. I've bumped of my level of training with my coach so I can participate in more structured group workouts each week and get a few personal workouts (in addition to other added benefits). I still feel so incredibly fortunate to have him. Even if other aspects of my life aren't exactly where i'd like them to be at this point, training and competing is something that truly makes me happy. And the people that i've met through the sport, whether it be the other athletes at my multi-sport center, my wonderful teammates, triathletes i'm getting to know in cyberland over myspace, or other competitors at the races themselves, makes this whole venture that much more fulfilling.