A Look Back on 2016 and What's Next in 2017

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A Look Back on 2016 and What's Next in 2017

2016 was another trying year. I was still in the cervical collar when I rang in the New Year.  It was a bittersweet moment, as I was happy to leave 2015 behind, but I also felt deflated as I was starting the new year of with an injury. I could not wait to be healthy, and thought that once I was free of that damn C-collar I would be good to go. What a delusion that was! It took me almost a year to feel like my old self again, and this was certainly not for a lack of effort to claw my way back to health and fitness. Much to my dismay, the road to recovery was long and lasted for the duration of my final full triathlon season before I return to medicine. Needless to say, this pursuit did not go as I had hoped it would, and after a great deal of struggle and despair I now feel at peace with what was and what will be.  Sometimes life does not feel fair, but I found it feels much better to embrace the struggle instead of fight it, and to not harbor resentment towards the unfortunate circumstances life throws at me.

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Thankful. Happy.

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Thankful. Happy.

I love Thanksgiving, a day filled with food, family, and festivities, and a day to express gratitude for all that we have. This year I feel exceptionally grateful for all of the wonderful things in my life because I have had a shift in my attitude and mindset. In the past I focused on all that I did not have or could not do. My heart and mind were soaked in negativity. I did not choose happiness. But now I find joy in each and every day, and for that I am thankful.

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Miracle Marigolds

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Miracle Marigolds

I call these flowers my miracle marigolds, as the flowers overcame adversity and came back to life, after being on the brink of wilting away and never displaying their vibrant oranges and yellows ever again. In lieu of training while I was injured, I took up a little gardening to help fill my days; I first planted a half dozen marigolds in two long rectangular containers at the end of May. The beautiful colors brightened the deck and my day, I felt very proud of my mini garden.

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Lake George Triathlon-Back on Top

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Lake George Triathlon-Back on Top

When I began to re-plan my season at the end of July, the Lake George Triathlon Festival was the first race on the Modified Schedule tab of my excel spreadsheet of 2015 races. The timing was right, just over 10 weeks after I started my progression back to biking and running; the location was also ideal, located just 30 minutes from the lake house where I go for my summer train-cations. The added bonus would be that my grandparents would be able to be spectators-their first ever triathlon experience-and I thought it would be really neat for them to see what my races, they so often hear of, are all about first hand.

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Life Transitions

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Life Transitions

I wish I could be writing a race report or a training update or a story with a happy ending, instead of a tale of heartbreak and sorrow. In contrast to 2014, a year that exceeded expectations, 2015 has been a year of disappointment as I watched my dreams seemingly fade away. It can often be said that ‘things get worse before they get better,’ and unfortunately this aphorism has come true and I find myself stuck in a transition; and not the scenario of my recurring nightmare of literally being stuck in T1 or T2.

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Looking Back and Moving Forward

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Looking Back and Moving Forward

This weekend is a rather significant weekend in the history of the second coming of my athletic career. After college I swore off training and racing; feeling disappointed by the short-comings of my collegiate athletic campaign and burnt out after battling through injuries my junior and senior year, I deemed exercise as a way to stay in shape and fill up my free time after work versus a means to getting into peak physical form for competition. All that changed when I started medical school in the fall of 2011. I would struggle going from class to the library without a time to decompress and recharge in between. So I did what I had done my whole life and I ran after school.

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14 Things that I Love Besides Swimming, Biking, and Running

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14 Things that I Love Besides Swimming, Biking, and Running

In celebration of Valentine's Day here are fourteen things that I love, not related to triathlon.

In no particular order: 

1.       Chocolate in most any form, but especially plain and simple dark chocolate. I also love chocolate cake, chocolate milk, chocolate brownies, chocolate sauce, chocolate covered almonds, chocolate pudding, and etcetera. Although one exception, I like vanilla ice cream better than chocolate ice cream.

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Ironman 70.3 World Championships-My Sister's Perspective

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Ironman 70.3 World Championships-My Sister's Perspective

By Tricia Sherrard

In our trusty mini van filled with equipment and food for the weekend, Mom and I successfully smuggled my sister over the border and arrived in Mont-Tremblant to join a multitude of athletes and their support crews. Upon stepping out of the car, we heard the repeated thump of dance music from the Ironman Village. Certainly this was a forecast for the weekend, which was full of festivities and excitement. Mont-Tremblant is the stuff of snow globes; a small ski village in the Laurentian Mountains nestled between the mountain and Lac Tremblant. Traditional French-style buildings with brightly colored roofs house a variety of shops, restaurants and patisseries. While Emily was busy being stressed and fit, Mom and I loved dancing at a U2 cover band concert, devouring crepes, and exploring the village. 

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