HDLs Going Down

Summer planning is well underway and I'm starting to feel overwhelmed by it all.  While I've accomplished almost half of the events that I've set out to do already, the REAL feats come in August, September and October of this year.  The logistics of me going to Africa for Kili followed by NY with the family make me feel like I'm planning for my first State Dinner at the White House.

We just had our most recent conference call with all six of the Kili participants on the phone at the same time.  Pretty amazing given that we're juggling 12 times zones.  Our group essentially depicts all maturity phases of my life (Name purposely withheld); Starting with my friend from when I was 5 and we have done everything together our entire lives and he is now an ER doctor, two more friends from when I was 8 that coincidentally are both in health care at some of the highest levels, another friend that I met when I was 17 and decided to travel the world for a while instead of going to college and finally, a college friend who is now in Afghanistan serving his 23rd year in the Army. Its going to be a great trip.

In any case, I was called back to the doctor a couple of weeks ago to do a follow up on my cholesterol and believe it or not, my levels have gone went down.  While I still have to watch the diet, my pants seem to fit a little better these days and I can wear a tie for longer periods without being too uncomfortable.  Exercising is getting a little easier and I'm finding that I actually need it...if I dont get it, I get cranky.

All in all, there seems to be some positive effects to early mornings, early evenings, training time and family time.

The interviews are becoming more and more interesting.  Recently spoke to a woman in the Washington, DC area that has lost 60 pounds since she started exercises all while running her own business and experiencing the wrath of her verbally abusive husband for being overweight.  She completely impressed me with her honesty of how she feels about herself now and contrasting that with her self-image before the weight loss.

I love the fact that my friends and family are following this journey and, at the very least, entertaining me with an "at a boy" when I see them at different events.  I've received a lot of encouragement from total strangers and all seem to be simultaneously curious, envious and stupefied by my 40th year.  I appreciate the comments and look forward to reading and responding.  We'll see how this all plays out, one way or another.

If I had $5,000....(BNL Music)

Ring Ring Ring

Dave:  Hello
Slob:  Hey man, what's up?
Dave:  Nada mucho, y tu?
Slob: We got a hotel room for the race but wanted to coordinate with you and stuff
Dave:  What are you talking about?
Slob:  The race in two weeks, I'm bringing the family and we got a hotel room
Dave:  I have no idea what you are saying; what race?
Slob: The triathlon we signed up for six months ago.
Dave:  I signed up for a triathlon that's in two weeks?
Slob:  Yep, I'm sending you the link so you can see your name on the website.
Dave:  I have no desire to do a triathlon in two weeks, I'd rather you get a running start and kick me in the nuts as hard as you can
Slob:  I would if you had any nuts to kick
Dave:  Good one.  Well, as long as you're going to be here, just stay at our house so we can at least carpool to this so called race you think I'm signed up for.
Slob:  Cool, see you then....

And so it went, the Slobs came to visit us and actually proved that I signed up for a triathlon.  Over three thousand people registered and everyone but me was excited to be there.  I felt like a grumpy old man:
-The lines are too long
-I have to walk too far to get my bike
-I have to wait too long to start the race (The winner finished before I even started, no lie)

But as I watched wave after wave of people I began to notice a progression in age.  Like most races, you start with people that are at or near your ability level.  With over 3000 people, that meant that they had roughly 30 different waves that went off in 5 minute increments.  I got a good view of about 15 of those waves and saw men and women of different ages start their slumber towards justifying the t-shirt they received the day before.  I started noticing a lot of patterns too;

1.  Men in age groups from 20 - 30 years old have a lot of tattoos
2.  Men in age groups from 40 - 50 have a lot of body hair in weird places
3.  Women of all ages are more polite to each other as they begin the thrashing of a mass swim start
4.  Men seem a little less conscience of the weird shapes of their bodies as they get older
5.  It seems that you need to spend about $5,000 on a bike to feel good about yourself these days

As I got into the transition area where all the bikes await their owners like little puppies in the window of the pet shop, I couldn't help but notice that there was millions of dollars in leisure equipment just laying around.  There was so much expensive hardware there this weekend it made me a little sad that the average person had been convinced somewhere along the way that even though they are getting older now and had to "compete" in individual sports, the way to make themselves happier was to purchase an eighteen gram crotch rocket that slices through the air.  There I was, borrowed bike, running shorts (no spandex), and a great sense of urgency to run as fast as I could so my wife wouldn't be late for an appointment she had immediately following the race and I could stay in her good graces.  Hey, everyone has a different motivation.

The finish line is nearing and there is my family on the final turn, screaming and yelling for Daddy.  The scowl that I had for the previous three hours immediately changed to shear joy and I grabbed my daughter so we could run the last 100 yards together and cross the finish line holding hands and pumping our fists.  You want to know why I'm "clinging to my youth?," so I can experience that moment for as many years as possible.  I will remember the crowd's cheers for us and her face forever.