Knees, Vacations, Sprint Triathlons & The Whole Nine Yards

Ok .. Ok .. So its been decades since I wrote in my blog.  I guess, after my first visit to the doctor, I got scared that my Ironman dream was drifting away...but I have good news...Im back in the saddle!!

I had my appointment with the Orthopedic physician in March.  The verdict?? No torn meniscus. No surgery required!! I got up and did a little dance!!! Wooo hooo!! It was as if someone had removed the weight I had had on my shoulders for weeks!!  I was back in the game and I couldn't be happier.

I wasn't completely out of the woods, however.  From years of being 380+ pounds, the doctor informed me that I do have osteoarthritis in both knees and uneven cartilage in the left.  He felt that physical therapy 4 days a week and some Celebrex might get me through until November but he warned me that my knees may not have too many Ironman triathlons in them.

I informed him I just wanted one......THIS one!!!

So, with a slow pace, I went back to road work. First it was 2 miles...then 3 ... up to 5 and now at 7, I feel OK when I run but it still hurts a bit.  My physical therapist is a woman I wish to kill on a daily basis but I feel she is making a difference.

In the midst of all this, my husband got his first REAL vacation in almost a year so it was off on a Southern Caribbean cruise instead of the Hawaii vacation we had planned.  The weather reports showed 70% chance of rain in Maui the entire time we were to be there, so we changed directions and headed to the tropical waters of Bonaire, Aruba, Grenada, St. Martin and Dominica!!  Great diving, great sun, great sailing and some very special time with my most amazing husband!!

But now its back to workouts with Hector, hours on the bike and laps in the pool.  I ran my first event of the season at Moss Park during the Wildman Triathlon Festival.  Due to my knee, I enter the AquaBike ... which consisted of just the swim and bike portions of the triathlon ... and would you believe...

I won.

No kidding.  No joke!  You could have knocked me over with a feather.  Ok...so there were 6 people total in the event...but....damn.....it was a nice way to start the year!!!  Don't steal my thunder.  Its not often the Athena tri chick does good!!!

The second event of the season was the Great Clermont Triathlon.  A nice little super sprint to get you warmed up for the day. If you wanna a good read about this adventure, click on over to my friend Beth's blog.  I guarantee a good chuckle but most importantly, it was a great day because I got to see a die hard marathon runner slowly becoming a triathlete!! You watch!!  This girl is gonna tear up Ironman Florida!!!

Next on the race list...St. Anthonys...my absolute FAVORITE triathlon of all in just 3 weeks!! I promise to keep you posted!!!