Racing to Save Lives

Hi friends! After my amazing experience with the 2009 Nautica New York City Triathlon (yes, swimming in the Hudson was amazing), I'm hooked: I've signed up to compete in the New Jersey Devilman Triathlon on May 8, 2010 as part of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team in Training.

All of us on Team In Training are raising funds to help stop leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma from taking more lives. Please consider making a 100% tax-deductible donation to support my participation ... your gift will not cover my race entry or transportation (I'll be paying for those myself) and at least 75 cents of each dollar I raise will go directly to TNT's mission to fight blood cancers.

This year's race will be full of new challenges. I've signed up for the slightly-scary "half-lite" distance, which involves a .9-mile swim, a 40-mile bike ride, and an 8.8-mile run. Yes, all in the same day! I'm also a mentor this time around, so I'll be shepherding several aspiring triathletes through the training and fundraising process over the next few months.

I hope you will visit my page often. Please check out these photos from my last triathlon, and be sure to check back frequently to read about my progress toward my 2010 goal. Thanks for your support!

JANUARY 24, 2009 - How your donation will save lives

Yesterday morning after Spinning class, my Brooklyn teammates and I took the subway into Manhattan to attend "Connection to the Cause," an event where we get to meet our honored teammates and learn more about what the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society really does. We didn't hear from any more 6-year-old cancer survivors (see "Why we're here," Nov. 17), but instead from two women who were diagnosed with blood cancers as adults. Thanks to research done in recent years, their cancers were both successfully treated and they've since competed in half marathons and marathons with Team in Training to show their thanks.

We also heard about new research that LLS invested in, helping scientists test whether existing drugs for other conditions might be effective against cancer. One doctor in Canada tested a foot fungus cream on cancer cells in the laboratory, and discovered that the active ingredient actually helped stop the disease's spread. This ingredient, formulized into a pill, is now in clinical trials and showing success against a very hard-to-cure type of blood cancer. It could be the next big life-saving drug, and it was made possible partly by funding from this amazing organization. If you were considering a donation and were wondering where the money really went, that's a good idea!

JANUARY 14, 2010 - First simulated brick

A brick practice is one in which you ride your bike and then run; they call it that because that's what your legs feel like when you get off the bike and take your first few steps. Since it's been too cold to bike outside, last night we did the next best thing. (And by "best," I mean "worst.") We ran. Then we did squats. Then we ran. Then we did squats. And so on and so forth for 20 minutes. Then 20 more minutes of running. Let's just say I'm feeling it today!

JANUARY 9, 2010 - Spinning!

Our outdoor bike session was canceled again this week due to cold and wind, but the local New York Sports Club was nice enough to donate its Spin studio to us for a 7 a.m. class. Wow - I'd forgotten how much Spin classes make you sweat ... especially when there's no fans (or lights ... or music ...) on in the studio because the gym staff couldn't find the key to turn the power on in the room.

We must have looked pretty funny to the rest of the gym-goers, pedaling away furiously in the dark, trying to keep up with our coach who was setting the pace in the front of the room. (90 RPMs is ideal tri riding pace -- the idea is to keep the bike on a low gear and pedal very fast but not very hard so that your legs don't get worn out by the run. This is something I'm definitely not used to. In my last tri, I saw the bike portion as a chance to chill out, relax, and take it easy!)

After Spin class, we heard a "mission moment" from one of my teammates who lost her sister to cancer more than 10 years ago, and another teammate whose brother was diagnosed with blood cancer last year. The good news, though, is that her brother's cancer was curable -- and she was able to help by donating bone marrow for his transplant last year.

These stories continue to inspire me and fuel my workouts, and though I'm lucky enough to not have lost anyone important to blood cancers, the more time I spend with this organization, the more connected I feel to the cause.

JANUARY 6, 2010 - New Year's swim

Happy New Year! We got off to a great start Monday night with our first weekly swim practice. (Yes, it was indoors -- this is not the Polar Bear Club!) Swimming is, surprisingly, the part of the race I'm LEAST nervous about, so pool practices are actually quite a relief to me. This week we focused on breathing and technique drills, like "fingertip drag" and kicking from our hips with straight legs rather than by bending our knees.

Then tonight was running practice in the park. I still have issues about what's best to wear when it's 30 degrees outside; no matter what I wear I start to overheat and sweat (and I'm seriously not going very fast at all) and then get cold and clammy. Tonight I wore a wool at and gloves, but was constantly taking them off and putting them back on, storing them in the pouch in my fleece pullover. Afterward I bought one of those earwarmer head bands -- that way heat can still escape from the top of my head without giving me frostbite. I'm getting there!

DECEMBER 12, 2009 - Holiday 4-Miler

This morning, instead of run practice, I joined several hundred other runners in Brooklyn's Prospect Park for a 4-mile holiday run. Today also happens to be the city-wide dress-up-like-Santa bar crawl, and I think a lot of the runners came prepared. So many funny Christmas costumes! As for the run, I took it slow and steady with one of my tri-buddies from the summer season; I was just glad I finished ... it's been a while since I ran even that far! Definitely made me realize I've got a while to go before I will be able to run the 8.8-mile Devilman course.

After the run we met some friends for brunch at a local diner, and I celebrated / rehydrated with a giant mug of root beer. I'm sure that negated all calories I may have burnt on the run, but, man, did it taste good.

Practice for the rest of the month will be tough to squeeze in, with work deadlines and shopping and traveling and SNOW! Happy Holidays, everyone!

NOVEMBER 21, 2009 First outdoor run

Today was our first practice -- outdoor running in the park. Our coaches taught us basic running form and then we headed to a local tri store to stock up on winter running gear. I usually tend to curl up in a ball and hibernate for the winter, so this whole running around in freezing temperatures is going to be interesting to say the least. I think I need more Spandex.

NOVEMBER 17, 2009 - Why we're here

Tonight was the season kick-off, where I met a lot of my new teammates and mentees, along with participants in two other spring TNT races. Kick-off is bascially a giant pep rally in a big auditorium, but there was one moment when you could have heard a pin drop. A 6-year-old Leukemia survivor named Lucy came up on stage (in front of all those people!) to tell us why what we're doing matters to her.

Three years ago, Lucy'd been diagnosed with cancer and spent months in the hospital receiving treatments. Some of the friends she made in the children's cancer ward during that time didn't make it. Luckily, Lucy responded well to her treatment and has been in remission now for more than a year.

Lucy told us how much she enjoyed it when her aunt, a TNT marathoner, would visit her in the hospital and tell her about all the crazy things people were doing to raise money for kids like her. "Thank you for helping me save my life, because it wasn't just God; it was you, too," she told us before she stepped off the stage. Wow. Okay, I'm ready for this.