Ah... that was me just five short months ago.  In the height of my athletic ability coming in for the first place finish in the 20-39 female age group of my first triathlon on the island of Grenada.  I had been eating raw for almost 7 months straight and was down to my racing weight. I had finished a marathon 10 months earlier, another huge milestone in my list of goals, and had competed in several 5Ks, 10Ks, Olympic and Sprint Tris, and two half-marathons in Florida before leaving the US. I had flown in on a Wednesday, and was already racing by Sunday.  I felt I could do anything!  Conquer the world! Next goal, train for a full Ironman Triathlon.  Surely a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike race, and a 26.2 mile marathon would be easily attainable in the next 12 months of training.

Then... the holidays.  I had been living apart from my husband for over a year as I fought to hold onto the American corporate dream in Florida while he studied to fulfil his dream of becoming a doctor at St. George's University School of Medicine in Grenada.  We were finally together again, as I decided to give up the house, company car and cushy job to join him on a tiny little island few have heard of, let alone visited.  But, the perks far outweighed the losses.  For one, I could be with my husband, which is usually the goal of marriage.  Also, I could finally leave the hectic stressful lifestyle of a sales rep and relax in the Caribbean.  And, the islands offered a great training backdrop with the intense hills and heat of the tropics complete with a great triathlon team to train with called Tri de Spice.  I got the inspiration of this blog from them. But, unfortunately, due to some time trying to catch up on my marriage and deal with some emotional adjustments, and a bike wreck and unrelated street accident that stopped me for a bit to recover, I let things slid in my training.  I have stopped training with my team for almost 3 months. I once read on my running store's wall that you lose 2 weeks of training for every week you are off.  I don't want to do the calculations, but I know I am so far from where I was when I stopped training in December.

I also stopped eating raw vegan in December.  My husband loves to eat out.  To accommodate him during Christmas break, as it's no fun eating a sad salad and most restaurants here have no idea what a real salad should consist of,  I went back to eating vegetarian. Unfortunately, while he has the metabolism of a hummingbird, I have one of a hippo.  The combo of getting off raw, not exercising, and eating regular cooked food with him caused me to gain 20 pounds in less than two months.  I know... hard to believe, but true!  I wasn't even eating that poorly, but my entire family is naturally built to retain instead of shed weight. 

We didn't own a scale until about a month ago.  When I got on it, I nearly cried.  I knew that almost none of my clothes fit.  I don't have many outfits either, as when I flew here I brought my Cervelo racing triathlon bike, three dogs, a juicer, assorted cookware, a few cherished books (including two triathlon training books) and two mattress bed toppers.  Two bags less than 70lbs each just don't offer a lot of room for a huge wardrobe with all of the additional items. When I saw the damage staring at me in the emotionless face of the scale, I ate my final cooked meal for my 33rd birthday dinner, then went on a two-week juice fast.  Since I couldn't fast and train, and I was so far behind anyway, I thought I would glean the health benefits of the fast and drop the weight faster.  It worked!  I found great health improvements and dropped 15 pounds in 2 weeks.  I also inspired many others following me on my Facebook page to join me.  It felt good to see so many friends feeling better and seeing huge health benefits as well.

Many people ask me why I believe that a raw vegan diet is the best way to go.  Honestly, I've done a lot of experimenting.  I was a regular SAD (Standard American Diet) eater until my mid twenties.  I then experimented with vegetarianism. I felt better, so I continued this way of life.  I then vacillated between lacto-ovo vegetarian to vegan for the next 8 years.  I was then introduced to a raw vegan lifestyle.  I tried it and, after an initial detox period, felt so much better.  I switched right in the middle of my racing and training schedule back in Florida.  Once my body adjusted, I saw such drastic drops in my endurance and racing times, I never went back until this past December.  Going back to just a basic vegetarian diet after being on raw vegan, I noticed a huge difference.  I felt a lot worse leaving the raw vegan diet.  So, after my fast I have started eating raw vegan again. 

So, that brings me here.  Staring me in the face is the huge staircase not just to the fitness I want to achieve in my final goal, an Ironman finish, but just to get back to the fitness level I was before the great crash of 2011. This is why I started this blog. What better way to re-motivate myself than to share my life with the world?  I know that if I have to write about my actions, it will keep me accountable to do the right things.  I think the more visible your world becomes to others, the better job you do of being the person you always wanted to become. This blog will be honest and straightforward.  I will chronicle my highs and lows of my training and my raw food lifestyle.  Hey, if we can't be real, why bother?

So what are my goals for this blog?  First, accountability.  I want to know that if I eat that chocolate sundae that my husband tries to share with me that I can't go back and write to you guys about how I'm staying true to my course of being a raw vegan.  I want to know if I skip that workout, I will have to dodge my conscience as I write about training diligently.  It will mentally keep me on course, which is half the battle anyway. Second, I want to help others accomplish their health goals.  This really empowers me!  I love seeing others go from couch potato to warrior athlete just because they decided to make that change and take charge of the rest of their lives.  If I can help with encouragement or information, I'm honored to take part in that metamorphosis. It happened for me.  I was once 50lbs overweight with tons of emotional and physical chronic health issues that are now just a distant memory because I put my health first. Third, it's fun!  This is my first blog.  I want to find out all the interesting people I can meet by doing this.

So, follow me, join me, encourage me, and empower yourself to reach your dreams with me! O.k. enough writing and big talk... I'd better lace of the shoes and go out for my first brick workout in months.  Wish me luck!