Biggest Loser Triathalon, Day One

The day did not begin well.

I hopped on the scale to find I have GAINED 2.5 pounds since Friday. HUH? I mean, I know I ate some cookies yesterday, but come on!!! Gave myself some positive self talk and kept going.

I went to make breakfast, and was nearly out of oatmeal. As in, I only had 1/4 cup and I needed 1/2 cup. I almost bought some last week, but I just KNEW I had 2 more boxes at home. Wrong. So I only had 1/2 of my usual serving. Not great on a high activity day.

I got to the gym and, you guessed it, every damn elliptical was in use. This is a BIG gym. There are 8 ellipticals (the kind I use anyway, there are other types too). NOW what do I do??

I saw my trainer and asked if she was free to train right then, rather than waiting an hour for my scheduled time. She was, so I worked with her for an hour first, leaving the entire 8 miles for after, instead of breaking it up into 2 sessions with training in between.

I had prepared well, bringing 2 big bottles of water and a snack of granola and grapes for my mid-point break. Only now my time schedule was all off.

I finished training and hopped on the elliptical. I think I've done an hour straight before, but at a lower intensity than I do nowadays, and I usually stop at 45 minutes. So this was going to be a long one. I just had no idea HOW long.

I don't sweat much, never have. 45 minutes on the elliptical will leave me "glistening", but that's about it. If it's really really hot out, my face and neck might get sweaty, and when I have a hot flash, my shins sweat (weird, huh?), but that's it. Well, I was sweating like a pig!! I drank all of my water. We're talking 48 ounces! No problem getting in my 8 glasses today!

I was reading a good book while I worked, so it wasn't too bad. But then I finished the book. I started another (God, I LOVE my Kindle!) but it just wasn't holding my attention very well. I kept looking at how far I'd gone, and thinking of how far I still had to go. That damn mileage display was NOT helping things!

At 5 miles, I had to take a break. The stupid machine tops out at an hour, plus a 5 minute cool down! So I had to reset. Thank God my trainer trusts me! I walked around for a minute, stretched a bit, and climbed back on. It was alot harder than I remember it being the first round. I decided to switch the display from distance to revolutions/min. I kept my speed where I usually do, but it was really really hard!

About 30 minutes in to my second round, my trainer came over to chat. I had a little more than a mile to go. I was fading. FAST. She gave me a pep talk, and stayed to encourage me. I'd sent my BFF a text, and she responded with encouraging comments like "you can do it", and "you're amazing and tough". This is why she's my BFF--she always knows exactly the right thing to say!! Thanks Tracey! Thanks Jaime!

35 minutes in, I switched back to the distance display, and realized I was almost done! I kept chatting with Jaime, and before I knew it, I'd hit the 3 mile mark! I climbed down off the machine, with more than a little difficulty, and did some stretching. I thanked her for her support, got my paper signed, and hobbled out of there. I ate my snack in the car, made a quick stop at the grocery store (oatmeal, remember?), and headed home to collapse.

Until I remembered I had to pick up my doggie from boarding. 30 minutes away.

How the heck am I ever going to swim 50 laps tomorrow?????