I made a decision that has changed my life. I have decided that I am going to be a triathlete. Did you get that? A TRI-ATH-LETE. ME! Of all people. It was a decision that was unlike me. Or at least that’s what I thought at the time. I mean, how can this overweight, unmotivated couch potato find the strength to do a triathlon? And not only do a triathlon, but become a triathlete (meaning that I will continue to do triathlons, meaning more than one)? It was an unthinkable thought that I couldn’t wrap my mind around. Hell, it is six weeks into training and I’m still in shock. So, do I regret my decision? Not one bit.

The last six weeks have kind of been a metamorphosis period for me. I have found that my body has changed, and not only that, but my mentality has changed. My way of life has changed. Before my decision, I was unhappy with parts of my life. It’s not that I have a bad life. On the contrary, I have a good job with a great boss. I’m relatively healthy (if you overlook the overweight part). I have a good husband, and dependable friends. And yet, I managed to be unhappy with it all.

I never felt satisfied, and because of that, I always felt at a loss. It made me feel like I had no control; that I couldn’t change what was around me. And the more I thought about it, the worse I felt about myself. In the end, I caused damaged to my confidence, my self-esteem, and caused the relationships in my life to suffer. I began to isolate myself and only pretended to be happy. But secretly, I was fighting a battle.

Then one day, I was tired of it all. I didn’t want to be unhappy any more. I didn’t want to feel miserable. I knew that I couldn’t control, or change what was around me, but I could change myself. It all sounds cliche, I know, but this was my first step towards being happy again. It was my chance to regain my confidence and become a person that I can tolerate.

So, after feeling good about my first step, I decided to take another. I thought to myself, “Self, what do people do when they want to change themselves?” I had a few choices, one including getting plastic surgery. But since I didn’t enjoy the thought of my face being ripped off and being placed on Nicolas Cage, I took the less dramatic approach. In these types of situations, you join a gym in hopes that you go on a regular basis, get in shape, and lose weight. And that’s what I did.

I started to go to the gym maybe once a week. I called this my break in period because even though I have been in a gym before, I felt like I didn’t belong. I was the ugly duckling of the group, but I was determined to eventually dominate all of those who stood before me. Needless to say, those poor fools had unknowingly entered a competition, and I was going to show them that I could win. My new found motivation led me to the workout that would change everything.

As I recall, I was on the bike when I suddenly got bored and decided to run on the treadmill instead. It was in the second mile of my run where I had the magical revelation that I just biked AND ran. And do you know what? I felt great about it. I felt strong. The only thing that was missing was swimming, and then I could do a triathlon. BLAM-O! It hit me. Why can’t I just do a triathlon? I’m two thirds of the way there already. It only made sense, somehow, in some twisted form of reality that was in my head.

It was in that moment that I decided to do a triathlon. And not only did I decide to do a triathlon, but I wanted to become a triathlete. A triathlon would be easy. Anyone can do a triathlon. But to become a triathlete meant changing my lifestyle in a way that would continue after I finish my first race. It meant changing how I looked at myself and others; a change that I was looking for when I took my first step. And so far, I love my change. Not only am I reaching my weight loss goals, but I’m starting to smile more. I feel myself growing stronger every day, in body and mind.

I can’t wait to see what happens on AND after race day.