Were you starting to get worried? No, I didnāt drown in Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg on tri day (if youāre not up to date, yes, that really is the name of the lake). In fact, I dare say I showed that lake whoās boss! I stuck to my plan of starting in the back, so as not to encounter the same terrifying situation as last year. If I had to do it again, Iād start more in the middle (I got stuck behind some slower people who I just couldnāt get past, which slowed me down) but overallāsuccess! I didnāt have any scary moments, I felt good during the entire swim and I even remembered to use some of the great swim strategies Audrey showed me. Hooray!

I'm out there somewhere!
The bike…..well, the bike kicked my ass. I donāt know what happened, but from the moment I got on the bike my legs felt like lead. I donāt know if I didnāt train enough (I definitely could have trained more, Iām not just being hard on myself there), or if it was just one of those days but the whole biking leg of the tri felt like a battle. There is also a KILLER hill (one mile up) about 4 miles in, which at least 75% of the people get off their bikes for. Iām not ashamed to say I was one of those people, but Iām determined to beat that hill next year. Itās good to have a goal š 
The run was goodā itās my comfort zone. I may not be the fastest runner, I may not have the best form, I may not set records, but Iām so familiar with it, itās like seeing a good friend at the end of a long journey. My knee held outā no pain until mile 3, which is whatās normal for me now, so I was happy. I felt good, but I was really cautious not to overdo itā I didnāt want to cause any further injury to my knee since I need to be focused on getting back to normal! 
And then my favorite part…crossing the finish line! Yeah, it’s about the journey, not the destination, but the finish line is always a great feeling. Iāve never doubted my ability to make it there, but crossing the line is still a validation of my effort, determination, struggle and yes, I still feel in that moment a victory and affirmation of the changes Iāve made in my life.
But I can’t lie, there was a solid 24 hours after the race when what was at the top of my mind was the fact that my time for this years tri was seven minutes longer than my time from last year. I was disappointed. Sure, my knee slowed down and shortened the time I had to train. But I didn’t want to make excuses, I didn’t want that to be a barrier to being better. Because if there’s one thing I always want to be, it’s better than myself.
I couldn’t seem to shake my disappointment. Until Monday afternoon, when James and I sat down to watch the video he had taped of the triathlon. On the tape, shortly after I started swimming, you can hear my mom say “…two years ago, she never would have done this…”
And it was precisely the jolt I needed to hear, as I watched myself start to swim. Because she’s right. Two years ago I would have NEVER EVER EVER imagined myself completing a triathlon (let alone two!). If you had suggested such a thing, I probably would have laughed, told you at least 5 reasons why it was a ridiculous idea, and laughed some more. Why had I allowed myself to lose sight of that in the face of seven extra minutes? And as I continued to watch the video, I found the feeling my disappointment hadn’t let me feel. I felt really proud of me. And that’s how I should have felt all along. 
Last Sunday, I was once again surrounded by more than 2,000 women of all ages, backgrounds, shapes and sizes. And I have to tell you that in looking back on those moments I realize I think we all too often sell ourselves short. We donāt believe in ourselves enough. We think we canāt or shouldnāt do something because we arenāt the smartest, best, fastest, prettiest, thinnest. Because we don’t have enough time, energy, resources. Because it won’t be easy. Whatever the excuse may be. We donāt even let ourselves start.
But once we do, weāre amazed by what we can accomplish. If you looked around on Sunday, you would have seen a vastly different group of women. But looking closer, I think you see a group of women who are remarkably the same. A beautiful group of women who had surely been toiling over the same goal for weeks, months, maybe all year. Maybe years. A group of women who had the strength to start, and to keep on going.
If all those women listened to the voices of doubt in their heads, Iād have been standing on an empty beach on Sunday. If I listened to mine, I wouldnāt have been there to see it. But I was there, and so were theyā a beach of 2,000 amazing, beautiful, fabulous women who will all tell you: If I can do it, so can you.