I can’t actually believe how fast this year is wrapping up. I looked at the triathlon racing after Comrades 2010 and plotted out what races I was planning on doing in the build up to Ironman 70.3 in East London in January and the Ironman in Port Elizabeth in April 2011. I only scheduled 3 before the end of 2010 and two have come and gone already. The next big triathlon on my racing calendar is the Prestige Ultra Triathlon in Vanderbijlpark on the 16th of December. 11 Days to go to my first half ironman triathlon. Just writing that scares me. I’m doing a half ironman having only done two triathlons up until now. My training has gone well and I am pretty sure I’ve done what is needed. I’ve got a couple of longish cycles planned for early next week but other than that it’s time to taper. I always get nervous when I start taking my body to places it has never been before. You never quite know how it is going to react to the stresses and strains you put on it. It was the same in he build up to Comrades this year every time I went up to a new distance I was nervous. The only time I attempted to double what I had done up until then was from an ultra marathon to Comrades. I am practically doubling what I have done to this point in triathlons. That is a huge step up and I think I’m understandably nervous. I’ve done more than the individual distances in training (except the run, I haven’t gone further than 15 since I picked up some ITB in August) but it is now a case of stringing it all together on the same day. I’m sure there is going to be pain on the day but I really hope I have a good race as this is my dress rehearsal for the 70.3 in East London which is just 6 weeks away. Now THAT is scary. 6 weeks away from my first surf swim. I’ll leave that for another post.

I’ve been meaning to write this race report all week but things have been pretty hectic so here goes. Last Sunday the 28^th of November I did my second triathlon, the Tshwane African Cup at the Pretoria West Power Station. If I had seen this picture before I entered I don’t think I would have.

Where we swam at the Pretoria West Power Station

I’m sure there are better venues to have a triathlon in Pretoria. The water wasn’t the cleanest I’ve swum in to be dead honest I’m worried I might have a pair of boobs growing out my back in a few years from now.

As far as the race goes, I wasn’t planning on Read more…

What an amazing day! I am humbled by what has happened and extremely grateful for all the kind words and encouragement at the Momentum 94.7 Cycle Challenge yesterday.

On the start line of the 2010 Momentum 94.7 Cycle Challenge

As far as the results go, it wasn’t the quickest race I’ve ridden this year but I didn’t set out to go fast. I wanted to experience the ride and this amazing city we live in. I took a whole bunch of Read more…

The Momentum 94.7 Cycle Challenge is happening tomorrow and I’m actually really looking forward to it. It’s been a long and stressful build up to this year’s race. We’ve managed to raise close on R250 000 for the PinkDrive, we have 200 cyclists riding in pink kit and I am extremely grateful to every who has contributed to make this initiative a success. Thank you. We didn’t raise the million rand I wanted to but if you don’t set lofty goals you will never get close to achieving anything big.

PinkDrive cycling kit for the Momentum 94.7 Cycle Challenge 2010

On the race itself, I have been in two minds about whether to race it and go for a decent time or have a social ride and see what happens on the day. I am super chuffed to have my dad and brother riding in pink with the rest of us tomorrow. My bro is a bit of a racing snake (Did Ironman this year and is hectically fit) and I’ve managed to do a few races with him this year already. To be dead honest I am super psyched to be able to ride with my dad tomorrow. He is in his 60’s and is in pretty good shape. He has 11 Comrades Marathons under his belt but hung up his running shoes after his last one in 1995. I’ve decided to ride with my dad tomorrow as I have never done anything like this with my dad before. I was able to do a bit of a ride with Dad on Tuesday morning out in the cradle. I was able to spend a couple of hours out on the road with him and had an absolute blast. If you’re riding tomorrow I hope you have a safe and enjoyable ride.

My Dad out in the Cradle on Tuesday

It is done. I can now officially say that I am a triathlete. I can also say that it was a lot tougher than I thought it was going to be.

My day started at 3am. Even though the start was only at 7am, I had a two hour drive to get to Sun City for the 11Global Triathlon. We arrived with enough time to spare that getting racked up and body marked was not rushed at all. My pre race preparation was as good as it could’ve been but in hindsight I probably should’ve eaten breakfast later than I did. Eating breakfast at 3:15am and only starting the race at 7:15am probably wasn’t the wisest decision I made on the day. I felt hungry on the start line which is not a great way to start your first triathlon.

Racking up in transition with my brother

Final Preperations

I got into the water a few minutes before the start. I had decided that I was going to try and stay out of the mad rush of the swim as much as could. I would hang back and Read more…

Six more sleeps to go. Its hard to believe that its less than a week to go to my first triathlon. By all accounts I haven’t picked the easiest one first up either. This Sunday, 7 November 2010 I will be at the start line of the 11Global Olympic Distance Triathlon at Sun City. A 1.5km swim, 40km cycle and a 10km run.

From just over a year ago, weighing in at 165kg’s and seriously unfit to being a handful of days away from competing in an event that most people shy away from because its too hectic! Who would’ve thought that would be possible?

I wish I could tell you how excited I am to race this Sunday. Not because I want to beat anyone or that I’m after a specific time. Just to go out and prove to myself that I can do it. After the disappointment of missing the cut off at Comrades 2010 I’ve worked really hard at getting better, stronger and faster. I haven’t raced much since June this year, I ran a half marathon in Pretoria really hard in July and took 20 minutes off my 21km personal best and broke 3 hours for a 103km cycle race in August. Other than that I haven’t raced at all. What I have done is put many hours in on the bike, on the road and in the pool. Its time to show myself how far I’ve come.

For the first time since I started training I’m injury free in taper week. For the first time I’m not worried about not finishing within the allotted cut off time. To be honest I don’t even know if there is a cut off time, that is because it doesn’t matter. It won’t get down to that. For the first time I’m not worried about being able to cover the distance. I’ve done the work in training. I’ve trained longer distances than I’ll be racing.

I can’t wait for 7am on Sunday morning to get into that water and prove the past wrong. Bring it on.

I got sent this list from Carol Willis, who has also lost a ton of weight and thought I would share it with you. I made a few changes, took a few things out and added my five cents worth where I could. It has been a crazy journey for me but one that has been extremely rewarding. Since July 2009 I’ve lost 50 kilograms. Here are 25 steps to losing that much weight:

1. The first and most important thing you need to get going is a reason to lose weight. You need a light bulb or “aha” moment – this can’t be engineered sadly, but if you are honest with yourself you’ll recognise it when it arrives. For me it was meeting someone who had overcome some great challenges and that inspired me to get moving.

2. Do the math – you need to know your numbers: weight, BMI, BMR, waist-to-height ratio, hip-to-waist ratio and a variety of measurements. Take as many as you can. There are some measurements I didn’t take but wish I had. My ring finger has become a lot smaller. Odd, I know, but my wedding band was fairly tight for me before I started my journey. I cant wear it now, it’s so big for me now it slides on and off without touching my finger! You need to know what all these measurements mean and how they affect your health; this is a great place to start.

3. Forget the math – the next and probably most important step, is to not obsess about those numbers. Know them, be aware of them, but don’t be ruled by them. Sometimes this is easier said than done but it is important not to get caught up in the numbers. Read more…

I have been asked this question quite a few times over the last few weeks. On the surface it was to lose weight and raise some money for charity. At the same time it is to be able to say I’ve finished the Comrades Marathon and to be an Ironman. But deep down there is a lot more to it. I came across a brief blog post this morning that I thought I would modify a bit and add to it a bit. Here is what I managed to come up with:

Why do I do this? To prove my ghosts wrong. That past failures don’t have to be an predictor of future performances. To prove the young blood that they’re not young enough and to prove to the old folk that they’re not to old to be there. To prove my past wrong and my future better, everyday. To make my weakness stronger in every way. To escape, to tell myself I CAN when its beyond safe, to show there is no limit, there is no such thing as good enough. To prove mind over body and body over mind. To achieve what was once unknown, unthinkable and in my mind unachievable. To enjoy every breath, sight, gasp, ache, sweat, sunray, raindrop, dawn and sunset. To prove that I can give my all. And then some. And then some more. Because it’s the best therapy and best of all its free. Because there is nothing I’d rather do. To me its completely normal to get up everyday to swim, bike and run. For hours at a time. Because only a few people know what it takes to get to the start line, knowing that even if its crawling, you have promised to get yourself to the finish and that’s saying something about yourself. To hear someone say “you’re not good enough” and have that push me to slash my times. To hear someone say “you’re crazy to even try” and have that push you to keep going when the urge is there to quit. To prove 4 hours 57 WRONG. To love doing what I do best. To be in that moment right there and not yearn to be somewhere else. To embrace the challenge and live the journey.

To chase down the person in front of me and show them how its done only to get passed and be humbled and inspired by them. To show life that I will not back down. I will not quit. And I will keep moving forward.

But above all to prove that limits don’t exist, boundaries are merely figments of our imagination – an oasis of our mind. Change can be made and the past can be left behind and to prove to myself that even if I can’t do it all right now, at least I can do this and just get better everyday in every little way.

I just got back from a 98km cycle and I am poked. We decided (Kevin and I) to do an easy 100km ride this morning. We headed out towards Maropeng at a decent pace and all was going just great. We were about to turn left off the R563 towards Maropeng when Kevin looked at me and asked “Are you feeling strong?”. Bare in mind at that stage we had done just over 30kms. I responded “ja, I’m feeling ok”. He then proceeded to ask me if I was keen on Hekpoort. I like visiting new places and had never been to Hekpoort so I said let’s do it. What the hell was I thinking???

Kevin did mention there was a steepish hill that we were going to go over but we would be fine. I got worried when we came around a corner and saw this view:

The view from the top of the Hekpoort pass

The road signs telling the trucks to engage a lower gear (like they do on Read more…

My training for the 2011 Ironman 70.3 in East London and the full Ironman in Port Elizabeth is going pretty well. I’m sure the time is going to come when I am going to need some serious motivation to get out onto the road or into the pool. I’ve always been a sucker for motivational videos. I found these two that absolutely fired me up. I thought I’d share them with you.

Read more…