Rocky Mountain High

Tim and I have been in Colorado since Friday night...I LOVE this state. And that is wierd, why??? I am the antithesis of an "outdoors" type...I do not love the woods, snakes, camping...ummmm no. But Colorado is amazing.

We flew in Friday to spend the weekend with my cousins Byron, Melinda and Logan, and we had a BLAST...these guys are so fun to be with, so relaxing, and just really cool people. We went to the pool, and went to the Alpine Slide - - basically a luge type slide at 10,000+ feet in Breckinridge - and just relaxed. They are our family, but we consider them friends, they are so much fun to be around. Byron and I worked out--well he actually whipped my butt swimming and then running--but it was great.

Then on Monday we drove to Estes Park, for a GMA event that I am speaking at. Estes is cool, it is at the base of the Rocky Mountain National Park - which we both loved!! Once again -- Miss "Anti-Outdoors" was a freak about driving up the mountain to the top--we actually did it twice!! And we have take a ton of pictures, that I might post if I ever get to it (not a strength of mine!!).

The coolest thing about being on top of the mountain is the perspective of just how small we are on this planet called Earth...and to remember how mindful God is of us. We were at about 10,000 feet, at a rest stop, and there were these chipmunks running all over the place...and I was thinking, "how on earth could a chipmunk get up this high?"...I mean, did the 1st 2 chipmunks on the mountain like hiking? It sounds silly, but the verses about how "every hair on our head is numbered" really seem to make sense when you see this little 8 pound chipmunk running around on the hillside of a mountain.

Well I have one more session then we are back to Nashville...hope you are doing well!!

leigh

Saturday's are for football...

So it is a beautiful day today in Nashville...I mean today has to be the perfect summer day. It is probably 80-85 degrees, and oddly the humidity did not come out to terrorize us today.

My day started with a 6 am wake up call (please do not tell me how ridiculous this is--Tim already has!! :) ), so I could ride my bike over to meet Suzie for our bike workout. I wore my normal bike shorts and a tank top, because it has been crazy hot all week, so we figured we would go early to beat the heat.

Well to our surprise, it was the perfect morning, sunny, no humidity, I actually could have worn a long sleeve shirt!! So we rode about 18 miles, and it was a slow, lazy, non-lance armstrong effort, but it was an effort nonetheless.

I got home earlier then normal for a Saturday (since we did not try to run or swim), and Tim was up, so we decided to head to Meridee's, our favorite breakfast spot in Franklin. what a payoff--french toast stuffed with cream cheese--could it be any more fattening? It was amazing, and I did not care.

So I came home, took a nap...then I woke up and hung outside with the doggies...it was beautiful. they decided to terrorize our neighbor dogs for a good half hour, then we headed inside.

So I started flipping channels, and I ran across a rerun of the 2006 Tennessee vs. Alabama football game. Now if you know me, you probably know 2 things about me:

1. I LOVE Football. Yes, the countdown is on (41 days) until Georgia's 1st kickoff of the 2007 season

2. I hate the Tennessee Volunteers. It is true hate. There is no other description.

So you must realize that my #1 (love for football) took over, and I am actually sitting here watching this game. Tim questioned my choice--and I defended myself saying--"do you know who won this game?" (cause neither of us did)...so that was my justification to sit here and to watch football.

And today is the perfect weather for a fall Saturday in Athens, GA, between the hedges.

I am ridiculous--I am SO excited.

4 minutes left in the 4th quarter, this is a close game! Go 'Bama!!

Hope you are well...

Triathlon!

So today I completed my 1st ever "Olympic Distance Triathlon" -- 9/10 mile swim, 26 mile bike and 6.2 mile run.  Yeah, it was pretty insane...long...tiring...but FUN!! 

I was honestly completely nervous before it began--I did not sleep at all last night, and was feeling very UN-prepared...I am typically obsessive-compulsive about training, but I definitely bit off more then I could chew on this race...

You see on May 28th, I completed a short mini-triathlon in Nashville - 200 meter swim, 8 mile bike - 2 mile run--it was so short and quick, and I loved it--I could compete, and pass people...and let's just say I became a tad over-confident in my new found triathlon abilities...so I looked at the racing schedule for the southeast this summer, and even though today's tri was only 6 weeks away, I decided to give it a go.

Well, in total Leigh fashion, I really tried to fit too much into my life at once -- you see, over the past 6 weeks, I have had a busy travel schedule...

--Trip to Greenville, SC for my cousin's graduation with Tim, then on to Atlanta to visit my brother

--Trip to Wilmore, KY, for a festival for work

--Trip to Dallas for a festival for work

--Week long vacation with Tim & friends in Chattanooga

--Trip to Wisconsin for a festival for work

6 weeks, 5 trips...I trained in Atlanta, Wilmore/Lexington KY, Dallas, Chattanooga and Appleton, Wisconsin...swimming miles, biking a few hundred miles and running over 100 miles...insane.  But fun nonetheless!!

So the tri was a challenge--more so mental then physical--we (Tim, my 1 fan came with me) got to Chattanooga on Friday night, rested all day on Saturday, then we went to the race site at 6 am Sunday morning...after setting up my transition area, I was off to the swim start.

The swim was in a River, it was my 1st open water swim ever.  The water was not too gross, it was warm and there was a good current.  I tried my best to follow the bouy's, and actually finished in 32 minutes, my fastest time at this distance ever.  I got out of the water, and ran to the transition to get on the bike, telling myself to relax, and to remain calm...my heart was racing.

The bike ride can be summed up in 1 word -- HILLY!  There were honestly NO flat spots on the course...it was a long up and downhill...this was the toughest part of the race--and the longest.  I finished in 1 hour and 37 minutes, which again, was a great time for me, but very slow compared to my competition.  I mean, so many people passed me, I started to laugh about it...and it was a blow to my ego, but hey, my goal was to finish, so I decided to just gut it out.  It really was long though, and I am happy to have finished!!

And then the run...I was the most confident about my run, because that is still the easiest sport for me to train for...so I rarely will skip a run workout...I did it a tad slower hoped (64 minutes for 6.2 miles), but I passed 3 girls in the last 2 miles that I had my eye on, which boosted my confidence!!  The cool part about the run was that my Mom was volunteering at the 1 mile/5 mile water stop (the run was one where you run 3.1 miles then turn around and run back), so she was there to cheer me on @ crucial times...when I had just started going on the run, and when I needed a boost to finish well.  I finished strong, and my Dad and Tim were at the finish line cheering me on -- I was exhausted & glad at the end. 

I grabbed 2 bottles of water, and finished off 3 pieces of pizza within 15 minutes of finishing...I did not realize how hungry I was after working out for 3.5 hours!!

I had a lot of fun, and am looking forward to my next event...not quite sure which race I will do next, but I am so fueled to get better...my goal for this race was to finish and to learn...now that "Grandy" in me is kicking in to become the best ever.  (It never ends!!)

Well I hope you are doing well...I am happy I have a day off of work tomorrow to rest and recuperate...I will probably take 3-4 days off, then get back at it!!

Hope you are well!!

Leigh

PS: My pre-race photo, and my finishing sprint...