I don’t know about you, but when I hear the word triathlon, I instantly think of insanely in-shape people who look like Arnold Schwarzenegger, train five hours a day and eat nothing but organic fruits and vegetables.  These people have no lives, except training, and although they are elite in their athleticism, their goals are completely unattainable to the common man or woman.  I liken it to being a brain surgeon.  Sure, I’d like to be able to do that, but I just wasn’t born with the ability, so it’s never going to happen.

Actually it makes me sad, because I know there are many benefits to the kind of workout required to complete a triathlon. According to Livestrong.com, by running, swimming and biking, you are working out your entire body. Regular training sessions will increase your cardio fitness, muscular strength and endurance. It improves your heart and lung functioning, and you will not get out of breath as soon because your working muscles will be supplied with oxygenated blood more quickly. And you will be able to train longer and harder as your endurance improves. It helps you lose weight and have more energy. And, it keeps you from getting bored.  I don’t know about you, but I can only run so long before feeling like I’m gonna lose it.  The monotony alone makes it hard to continue.

However, it seems like I was a little mistaken (and overdramatic) in my fear of triathlons. Maybe they are not as unattainable as I thought, and you don’t have to be born with crazy athletic ability in order to do one.  In fact, all you need is a little training.  And that’s why I am so excited that Faith Community Ministries is partnering with Tri-N-Run to start Triathlon Training!  The training takes place at Faith Community Center and will be led by Travis Butts (a USAT Level 1 Coach!)  Clinics include running, swimming, biking,
transitions, and nutrition!  There are six individual clinics (more as needed) and daily training schedules to help you keep at it!  Plus, a short sleeve technical shirt, and let’s be honest, showing off by wearing the shirts are half the reason we do this right? Ok, maybe it is more to benefit our general health and well-being, but still, triathlons are no longer out of reach or only for the elite; you can do it too!  Find out more here!

According to the American Heart Association, “In the United States, about 76.4 million people age 20 and older have high blood pressure.” I don’t know about you, but I am fairly certain that it does not take a genius to see how big of a number that is. What I am most concerned about, however, is that many who are diagnosed fail to realize the reality of having high blood pressure or are misinformed (even uninformed) about it. Continue reading →

The first thing that most of you probably think of when “strength training” or “weight lifting” is mentioned includes big, sweaty muscle men…or, maybe you are one of those! One of the main points I want to make in this post is that strength training does not automatically lead to veins bulging out of your biceps; however, it does lead to some great health benefits: Continue reading →