My AHA Moment!

My fiancé thought it would be nice to take some time and remember my "aha moment"... As in the moment when I realized that I really love what I am doing and I am not too shabby at it.

For years, I have dabbled in both triathlons and marathons. I never thought I was much competition to anyone, I just enjoyed being active and having something to train and look forward to. I was never the skinniest girl nor did I believe I was the most athletic. I grew up playing tennis but constantly found myself giving excuses why I wouldn't take it to the next level. I was complacent. I was healthy. I was having fun. I didn't need to be the best in the world.

The same goes for triathlons. I grew up seeing cross country runners sprint past our high school tennis courts and I would think that they were beautiful with their gorgeous long and lean bodies. They were fast because they were so trim. Since I didn't fit that physique, I never thought that I could be a competitor. But last year, while out on a training ride with my Pacwest triathlon team, I was having a conversation with my buddy Ian and we talked about how amazing one of our teammates was. Ian said that our teammate was built for triathlons. She had such strong legs that could help propel her to top speeds. That moment, I thought, wow, really? My body is kinda like that! Maybe my body was built for triathlons too! I've got muscular legs - these babies can probably build up some speed.

And crazy enough, once I changed this outlook on my figure, I started to be a really strong force in my triathlon field! I have a great coach who constantly pushes me to be a tougher and stronger athlete. I have a fabulous group of training friends who made tough rides and runs actually fun! And of course, I have Patrick, my fiancé, who believes that I can do absolutely anything that I put my mind to.

For years, I've allowed my silly thoughts to create this belief that I didn't have what it takes to be a strong competitor but with a quick conversation all of that changed! And now, I can't wait to see what I can really push my body to do! No more excuses!