2010: The good, the bad and the ugly

I am gallantly stealing this blog title from a movie starring Clint Eastwood (I am now going to have to watch the movie). As a year closes, I always like to look back and reflect on how things played out, both positive and negative, to hopefully learn how to make things better for the following year. Even though we cannot control everything that occurs, lessons can always be learned.

Here is how the year played out.

The six-pack

I used to aspire to having six-pack abs. I did crunches until my abs ached. I cut out sugar. I researched the topic as if I was going to write a book. I never did stoop so low as to buying a gadget off an infomercial, but I did think about for just a second.

People who knew of my quest told me it was genetic. This certainly made this effort more futile given that even though my family carries the stubborn gene, the athletic gene and the shopping gene, it does not carry the 6-pack gene.

Eventually I gave up.

And then I got the stomach flu last Sunday.

What should age groupers expect from pros?

I was asked by Nick Rose, via Twitter, to weigh in on a discussion about what age groupers should expect from pros as fans.

This is a very heady topic. Truly, the role of professional triathletes is nebulous. We, of course, are expected to perform at races, but beyond that, what is the role of the professional triathlete?

How to stay busy in the off season

The off-season is finally upon us. Although, is there really an off-season anymore? With big races on the calendar all 12 months, it is tempting to eschew time off to maintain that hard fought fitness and prolong racing.

Having lived in areas with winter for my entire triathlon career, there has always been a natural stopping point to the season. During this time, I like to focus my attention on things that get ignored during the season.

Temecula Turkey Trot

Turkey trots are contested in cities and towns all over the country Thanksgiving weekend. For some reason, people imagine that running a 5k or 10k negates the overindulgence of the Thanksgiving meal; that running in a race somehow wipes the calorie slate clean and the meal is a free for all.