Life as I live it: A look at some great role models!

What a gorgeous Fall day! The colours of the trees are bright Red, Orange and Yellow, and the sun is shining strong through the clouds. The water is still mud though, ha! I have come to accept that my splits are going to be slower in colder water, but that is no excuse to push with less power right? Right! For my first of two rows today (which included pieces), I knew that as long as my heart rate was within a certain range, then I was doing the right work. I find it really helpful to have a heart rate monitor I must say. It helps me know that I am working within the right training zone and making the most of my workout. There are so many different brands and preferences that people have – I personally really like my Polar watch. It’s funny because when I went to buy it a few months back, I asked the sales rep if I could see their selection of heart rate monitors, and so he showed me a group of watches. My eyes liked the Timex watch…A LOT (much nicer looking), but I knew that Polar was known for accurate heart beat measurements, so I asked the sales guy if he had a Polar watch that looked like the Timex one. He looked at me with confusion (and maybe even disgust!) and said “You’d choose a watch based on appearance?”…heck yes I would!!! Unfortunately in this case, my eyes didn’t win, and I went with Polar.

Fall is also a time when people start to get a little sick..sniffles here and there, head feels heavy, and you want to sleep 12 hours a night (wow, that would be a beautiful thing)! I have been fighting off this minor cold for the past couple of days, and I think gargles with salt are helping a ton, as well as…..(people who know me well can fill in the blanksJ) – honey and lemon with tea! And yes, that cures EVERYTHING, ha. Plus Cold FXJ. As an athlete, you just need to make sure you are dressing for the weather and also considering how your body temperature will change as you get into your workout. I seriously need to look for better workout gear for cold weather – my friend told me about this really good clothing line that helps you stay warm as you sweat (I forget the name), so I’ll try that and let you know if it makes a difference;). Right now I am settling for the 100 layers of clothes (you think I’m joking? Just look for the person who looks like it’s -40 degrees, and that will be me). It’s also good to do a warm up off land before getting into a boat. That way your muscles are warmed up. I have found that dynamic movements are also really helpful.

But getting a minor cold is NOTHING, and you just deal with it! There are so many amazing people who go through so much. I have had people close to me fight cancer and prove that anything is possible. I work for a health company (developing and selling products that diagnose cancer and help treat patients), and so I literally surround myself by this every day. It puts life in perspective that’s for sure. I wanted to mention this because this morning before I launched, I was speaking with an older master’s rower who had just done Head of the Charles (a big regatta down south in Boston). He is in his late 60’s and speaking with him about his experience helped me appreciate all the people out there that push themselves through life challenges and obstacles, regardless of age. Wanting to always stay motivated, I started to think about more stories that have proven that “anything is possible”….here are some stories I wanted to share with you today (get some tissues)…

100 year old man runs marathon

Inspiring Father & Son Ironman Story

(I had the honour of watching Dick and Rick race in Hawaii back in 2003, I was there cheering on my brother who had qualified to race in the Ironman World Championships that year)