I did it! I finished my first Olympic distance triathlon last Sunday in 3 hours, 8 minutes!

Read more about my Lavaman race experience here and check out some of my photos on flickr. Thanks to everyone who supported me in this exciting adventure!

One week from today, I'll be racing in the Lavaman Triathlon! We had our last team run practice yesterday, a scavenger hunt on muddy wooded trails, everyone stepping carefully to avoid potential injuries. It was a bit chilly at the start, but the rain held off and I warmed up soon enough.

Our Saturday practices all start with Mission Moments, usually someone on the team telling everyone what brought them to TNT or telling a story about a specific patient, often choking back tears. Sometimes a teammmate will bring a friend who has been affected by blood cancer. Yesterday, our visitor thanked us for all of our fundraising efforts and made an interesting point. He said that he was thankful that some of us got involved before tragic circumstances made us see the need, bringing positive energy to the fight against blood cancers. So often it does take a personal connection to drive people to raise money for a cause, and I think this is one of the great things about the TNT program. It builds awareness in people who might not have a direct reason to want to help the LLS but want to be healthier or push themselves by competing in endurance events. The Team builds healthier communities in more ways than one.

With ten days to go until race day, I'm confident that I will finish my first Olympic distance triathlon. When I started training in October, the swim was the most intimidating part of the race, and now, thanks to my awesome coaches, I know I can do it.

This weekend I'll be baking a ton of cookies for my generous supporters,and it's not too late to add your name to the list! Just donate $50 or more, and I'll bake you a dozen homemade cherry almond chocolate-chip cookies. Yum!

The weather was grand this morning for my 23 mile bike ride and 6 mile run. Lake Washington was glassy and fog-dappled, birds were chirping everywhere, and on one street the fragrance of plum blossoms was almost overwhelming. When I got off my bike, I took off my jacket and ran the 6 miles in a t-shirt. After the workout, my teammates stretched and hydrated in the parking lot, enjoying the sun in various states of undress. Those of us who rode our bikes for 2 hours or more in the pouring rain last Saturday could truly appreciate the dryness!

It's hard to believe that in 18 days I'll be getting up before dawn to rack my back for the race!

This was a fun Saturday morning run a few weeks ago. Aarthy & I got to the turn-around point for the 6-mile option and decided to go up the hill and make it eight. We rocked it!

Thanks to all who turned out for the Scrabble tournament Sunday night in spite of the nasty weather. Big thanks also to Malcolm & Garage for donating their time & space!

Last weekend I signed the official paperwork to commit to the team and my fundraising goal. I now have a race entry and a plane ticket! Only 59 more training days and $4,225 worth of fundraising to go!

Saturday's practice was a trail running game called Pirates & Scallywags - an hour of running around on the muddy trails of Mercer Island in pirate gear (cue the awesome black white & red jolly roger socks), trying not to be caught by pirates. Arrrrg! This was way more work than it seemed, and I was more sore on Sunday than expected. I haven't been sore after running in a while, but my runs don't usually include sudden bouts of sprinting either. I definitely enjoy trail running more than track running. When I run on the track, I dwell on the clock, but in the woods my mind has more distractions, thinking about where my next step will land and wether or not there will be sticks/rocks/mud there.

I expect that our workouts will increase in length and intensity in the coming weeks, so I'm sure I won't be a stranger to sore muscles. I'm looking forward to a the pain!

Yesterday started with big messy piles of slushy snow and deep puddles everywhere. By the time I arrived at work, the bottom eight inches of my jeans were soaked, even though I'd rolled up the cuffs a bit. I love the snow, but this was sloppier than I've seen in a long while.

Surprisingly, by the time I headed cityward for track practice, it felt warm. I got out of the car expecting to be chilled to the bone, but it wasn't too bad, probably above 40 degrees! When you're ready for frigid and rainy, dry feels wonderful in any temperature. Any practice that doesn't require dry socks and shoes afterward counts as a good one.

This was one of those nights that nothing felt quite right: wobbly while trying to balance, and no extra gas in the tank when trying to pick up the pace. But I ran anyway, and I will do it again. There are good days (like Monday's fantastic swim) and not-so-good days, and I know I just have to keep at it.

My first team swim workout of 2011 was better than expected. I felt strong and reasonably smooth tonight. I can tell the drills are starting to help. I wasn't flailing nearly as much this time, and I felt almost as strong at the end as I did at the beginning.

I'd like to say a big THANK YOU to both Third Place Books locations for donating 20% of the proceeds from the book The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer by Siddhartha Mukherjee to my fundraising campaign. Together we've already raised over $250 for blood cancer research!

It's a fascinating book, even for a non-scientist like me, and I'm learning a great deal about the history of cancer research. The author weaves scientific history together with stories from his own coming-of-age as an oncologist, adding a personal touch to the story of humanity's relationship with this disease.

Support LLS by buying your copy today at Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park (17171 Bothell Way NE) or Ravenna (6504 20th Ave NE). Learn more about the book or order online here.

Thank you for your support!

Unlike many of my teammates, I didn’t sign up to fundraise because I felt a connection to Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and its mission. I just wanted a group to train with and some motivation to get off the couch and stay active through the winter months, which are long and dark here in Seattle. I wanted to meet people who like to get outside and don’t mind getting wet. Oh, and going to Hawaii at the end didn’t sound too bad either. So when my friend in San Diego completed a triathlon with TNT and immediately signed up to do it again, I thought it was worth investigating.

Since I started training with the Team, I’ve met some amazing people. I can honestly say I’ve never encountered this much positive energy anywhere. There’s no room for complaints in this group. We run in the wind and rain and dark with soggy, numb toes and fingers and get together for beers afterwards and laugh about it.

Each person on the Team has a different reason for participating. Many have family or friends who have survived or succumbed to blood cancers, and several are cancer survivors. I am learning a lot about love, dedication, and strength.

My grandmother died from leukemia when I was in high school, and I am thinking about that fact for the first time in my life. I inherited her engagement ring, her maple rolling pin, and a few recipes, as well as her knack for learning languages, and I think of her when I use these things. For most of my childhood, my grandparents lived far away, and we saw them a few times a year. We did not know each other well. I can only wonder what we’d have to say to each other now.

My mother is a cancer survivor, and I am thankful that I was left on the periphery of what must have been a scary experience while I was in middle school. I have vague memories of Mom coming home and having to do exercises to regain mobility, but for the most part I just went on with my self-absorbed preadolescent life. I am incredibly thankful that she is alive today, and that previous generations funded the medical research that led to her survival.

Please give what you can. You are making a difference.

After a week without any team practices because of snowy mayhem and Thanksgiving, it felt good to get back into the rhythm last week and see all of my teammates. It's amazing how uplifting it is to see all those smiling faces ready to go after a long day. Even on a dark, rainy Wednesday night, splashing through puddles and facing a biting wind at the second turn of each lap was somehow fun. My shoes were squishy by the second lap, and since we were running at an unlit track,dodging puddles was a bit tricky. If you'd asked me to run laps at all (let alone in the rain and dark) three years ago, I would have laughed heartily at the suggestion.

Monday night's swim was tough for me, trying to learn a new stroke technique that felt unnatural, but I went back to the pool today on my own and felt much better. Not smooth by any means, but better. The swim is definitely going to be my biggest challenge, but I know I'll get there over the coming months.

I'm going to attempt some thank-you cookie baking today in my cabinetless kitchen. I just have to track down all the ingredients and equipment first...

Welcome to my Team In Training home page.

I'm training to participate in an endurance event as a member of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) 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. I am completing this event in honor of all individuals who are battling blood cancers. These people are the real heroes on our team, and we need your support to cross the ultimate finish line - a cure!

Please make a donation to support my participation in Team In Training and help advance LLS's mission.

I hope you will visit my web site often. Be sure to check back frequently to see my progress. Thanks for your support!

A heavy frost coated everything when I left home at dawn this morning. Even the road sparkled. Before the team run we had a gear clinic with the nice folks at Everyday Athlete in Kirkland. By the time we started running, the sun had come up, but the frost still clung to the grass and I watched my step on patches of frosty leaves. A great blue heron fished just off the trail, and ducks bobbed along the shore. If I hadn't had a group to meet, I'd have still been home in bed. As with every practice so far, I got to know a few more people and soaked up a little more knowledge and inspiration.

I was curled up under a fuzzy blanket on the couch with a good book, drinking coffee late this morning, enjoying an unusual Sunday off, when James came in and announced, "It's snowing!" Now those who know me know that I complain about being cold all the time (I have become soft living in Seattle, where the temperatures stay above freezing most of the winter). However, I also long for the sunny days and deep snowdrifts of Colorado! So when I saw the swirling flakes, I just had to get out there and play, so I donned a pair of fuzzy socks and laced up my running shoes. The flakes got bigger and bigger the whole time I was out there. Sweet!

This morning I made my first trip to Mercer Island for an 8am trail run. We played a name game, running through the woods and trying to track down specific teammates. This was hard since most of us don't know each other! It was fun though, and a good team-building exercise. Not to mention the actual exercise! The trails were covered with a blanket of wet pine needles and leaves, so I was more focused on my footing than usual. I was surprised that I'd often run for 5 or 10 minutes without seeing anyone else - the park was bigger than it seemed, with lots of looping trails. By the time we'd finished, the sun was shining, and we all had homemade peanut butter banana recovery muffins and went out for coffee. Yum.

We had our first Eastside track practice last night. Rain poured down in the afternoon, and I anticipated a cold, wet workout in soggy shoes, splahing through puddles on the track. Not so! The weather smiled on us with overcast skies and a bit of wind, but not a drop of rain.

The well-lit track made recognizing faces much easier (quite a contrast with last week's unlit track), and the puddles were sparse and thus avoidable, so my feet stayed relatively dry. I learned a few more names, and bought a $5 raffle ticket from Jennifer, a teammate who's offering up her personal chef services as a prize (For more info on this contact Jennifer@HomePlatesChef.com).

The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer by Siddhartha Mukherjee hits stores today, and Third Place Books (my employer) has agreed to give 20% of the proceeds from sales of the book to the LLS. My coworker Erica and several other booksellers have read advance copies, and they have all raved about it. The adjective that keeps coming up in their desciptions is "riveting," which I would not have expected. It's a lovely book, so even if you don't read it, it will look smart on your bookshelf and impress your friends. :)

You can learn more about the book and order a copy here:

http://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781439107959

It's a lovely book, so even if you don't want to read it, it will look smart on your bookshelf and impress your friends. :)

Or of course you can stop by either store and visit your friendly neighborhood bookseller at the Lake Forest Park (17171 Bothell Way NE) or Ravenna (NE 65th St & 20th Ave NE) Third Place stores. Come by and say hello!