This time last year I made the decision to race in Ironman 70.3 in Austin, Tx. Due to school and work schedules, I  had to let go of that dream temporarily and it killed me. I promised myself that after graduation, I was going to get back into the swing of things and try again in 2015. After a difficult early 2015 season, the time has come once again to set my sights on Ironman 70.3. I really wanted to spend time with my family before training started. I know when I get into the thick of training it becomes a balancing act and I just wanted to have some good ‘ol fun before summer ends. NOT that all fun has to end now! Any parent can tell you however, that when the school supplies show up in the stores, summer seems to end overnight. So taking these last two weeks to have summer fun with the family is just what I needed.

So here I am! Week 1 of Ironman 70.3 starts THIS WEEK. I have a 16 week training program that I downloaded from Amateur Endurance. For the most part I will be training on my own. I joined a triathlon group early in the year however, I have yet to join them for a workout. When I originally I signed up they were offering open water swims 10 minutes from my house (which is initially why chose that club) but after the record breaking rains & flooding here in Texas they moved their practice almost an hour away from me. I haven’t wanted to wake up early enough to make the hour long drive on a Saturday just yet. Now that I’m actually training for a big race, I will make more of an effort to get out there and try to join them for their group training.

I’m also looking into buying a new bike! I’m super excited. I found the bike that I want and it’s pretty affordable. You guys know that I’m a self-professed cheap-o so I had to wait for a good deal. I’ve been shopping around at my local bike stores and finally found one while a great sale was going on and the store offered great payment options. I chose the Fuji Sportif 2.3.

I tried another version of the same bike with lesser components and loved it however, if I’m going to upgrade I really wanted better components. I was still very limited with my budget but for now, this will work. I‘m hoping it’s a better choice for my first 70.3 but I’m positive anything is better than my $300-oversized-bought online-clunker. After I get my new bike I’m planning on giving the old one the my husband…yes, it’s that big.