The latest drama is now over.

I've continually thought that I was no longer in the running to be a contestant for season 2 on American Gladiators... And just about the time a week goes by... When I decide to blow the diet... Yeah, they call or email. It has been nuts. At least once a week, sometimes more I hear from them... Last weekend was the mother of all panic attacks when I decided to blow the diet... And then checked my spam box and discovered an email notifying me that they still hadn't made any decisions yet. All the while kicking myself for eating the chocolate chip cookies earlier that morning.

Last Sunday I got the email with 40 pages of legal documents that I needed to look over, flag, and highlight. Boy! Let me tell you! I will never watch reality television the same again! They leave no stone unturned when it comes to possible things I might come back and sue them on. It had everything from understanding that I might be hurt, injured, or even die! (okay, that's nothing new. I sign those everytime I ski or do a tri.) To me acknowledging that I would be athletically disadvantaged to people that could knowingly be on steroids... But I would have to positively drug test that I am not. Then there were the confidentiality agreements... And of course the misrepresentation clauses that scared me the most... Put simply, when you choose to be on a reality television show, you have NO rights. Pretty scary stuff when you're putting it all out there.

I received the legal stuff on Sunday, they were notifying people on Tuesday, and people were to report (packed for two months) to Los Angeles on Thursday.

Needless to say, I'm SOOO relieved because they didn't call on Tuesday. How I could pack for two months in two days is one thing... Writing sub plans for two months... ha ha ha... That's a total joke!

Things all work out for the best, don't they? Sure I would have liked the shot at $100K in a realm that looked like a whole lot of fun, but overall, I'm extremely relieved I didn't have to sign the 40 pages of legal documents that scared me to death. I'm actually really glad that I don't have to be on national television with the potential to look and act like a total idiot.

If nothing else, all this got me off the couch and back into the gym with a vengeance. I start a really good half marathon training plan next week. I've got a really nice base going into it. And if I stick with the weightlifting, I'm gonna have some nice arms come tank top season!

I think the best thing of all is that I was drifting into a serious post-ironman depression this winter... I'm still not pregnant, I had no big events going on, typical winter-time depression... I'm happy to say that I just had an exciting roller coaster of a month and a half that completely got me out of my funk!

And now spring is knocking on the window! Strangely, I was so happy to be done with long weekend bike rides and runs after my ironman... But I'm just dying for the weather to break so I can get back out there again. Life is good.

Stepping Up!

A couple of days ago I went on a rant about people that complain because they wish they were more fit, but the only thing they do... IS COMPLAIN ABOUT IT!!!!!!

Well, here's to my sister-in-law! About two months ago she took on the challenge of her brother, my husband, and started to do some work outs that he prescribed. She has now lost 12 pounds!!!!!! And... This weekend she did a 5K! Today I solute the people that make the effort and put their two feet on a start line! I'm proud of you girl!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pre race jitters?


How does this thing attach on your shoe???


Good starting pace


You try to run up that hill and maintain a smile!


The home stretch!


Looks like the post race endorphins are in full swing!

Congratulations Niki!!!!!!!!!!

The latest...

Whoo-hoo! I pulled two 12 and 13 hour days at school this week because we had parent/teacher conferences so I have a comp day today! Yahoo! I got to sleep in. A few minutes to update the blog... And then I'm out the door to enjoy some powder on the slopes this afternoon before all the Denverites head up to ski this weekend!

Update #1 - "The Diet"
Monday was really hard, but I surprised myself that when I limited my lunch to just a sandwich and water... I then had a midafternoon snack... And it wasn't bad! I've been hungry every night and I've been struggling with that a bit. I'm also really focusing on getting my calories from protein and good carbs. I definitely need to continue to up my protein intake.

The news I want to celebrate! The wonderful parents at my school brought in all matter of cookies, lemon bars, pie, and brownies for us to munch on during conferences. The first night it absolutely KILLED me to avoid all the sweets. It was just awful. On night 2, it was hard, but not as hard to avoid. Yesterday was Valentine's Day. I could NOT believe the amount of sweets in our teacher's lounge. I avoided every single Hershey Kiss, gummy bear, you name it! And it wasn't as hard as you'd think. I really do think that once you rid your body of all the sugars, it doesn't crave it as much. I'm really happy with how I avoided all the sweets this week. I'm really happy I finally have something in my life to scare the living daylights out of me enough that I'm finally going to scrutinize my diet.

Update #2 - "American Gladiators"
I don't really know anything at this point, so I think it's safe to talk about. My whole school knows about it. Heck, I had a couple teachers comment that they were bored and wanted to come in to talk to me during conferences, but I ALWAYS had parents in my room. I told the other teachers that they would have been a whole lot more popular if they had tried out for "American Gladiators"! I swear, 2/3 to 3/4 of my conferences had absolutely nothing to do with school. All the parents and kids just wanted to talk to me about trying out for the show. I'm not complaining. It was fun.

Thus far I had to do an on-camera interview in workout clothes, with the show's logo in the background. If I'm selected, they'll use some of that footage for my profile. Naturally I have to be the Monday morning quarterback and rethink everything I said and answered, but I can't change it now. They also gave me 2 1/2 days to go home and make a home video tape of myself that they might also use footage from.

Thank goodness I work in a school that it nutty over the fact that I tried out for the show. Our tech ed department let me borrow a camera, and then they did all the editing for me. The guys didn't use all the footage that I would have liked, but then again, it was probably good to have a third party choose what went into the video and what didn't. My only regret is that my husband and I got up at 5 a.m. to film, and then stayed up until 12:30 to film. We did some filming of me with my bike on the trainer when my husband starts laughing. "You should tell them you like to watch the Weather Channel!" (For some reason he thinks this is absolutely hillarious. I feel the same way about him because he watches poker on tv. To me, that's even more boring!) Anyways, I look into the camera and say "And one unique thing about me... I can watch the Weather Channel for hours on end." My husband thinks this is just funniest thing ever. My tech ed department decides to use it in the film....

Um... Good choice? Bad choice? While it might have been funny at 12:30 at night, it wasn't as funny the next day. I'm sure the producers think I'm a barrel of laughs at this point. Yeah right! But what can you do now?

So for now I'm just waiting. If they want me on the show, they could call anytime between now and the time they start filming in Los Angeles. If they don't, I won't hear anything. If they do want me I hope they notify me sooner than later. I'm going to have some hoops to jump through to get the time off from school. Who knows. I'm trying to pump up as much as possible if they do call. If not, I've really enjoyed the status upgrade at school. As one parent commented, "You've had a good year, haven't you?"

Yep. It's been a good year! Now off to the slopes!!!! Yee-ha!!!!

Never say "DIET"

I've never once in my life subscribed to a diet. I LOVE food! I always justify my food intake with a harder workout later. So far, it's worked well for me. But for once, I want to one up the system. I want to see what might happen if I really and truly watched everything I eat... One month...

Man... This is going to be a tough month. I'm aiming for 40% protein, 40% carbs, and 20% fat. I plan to up my workouts at the same time... If I'm a little crabby... I'm sorry. It's just an experiment... I may never try this again...

My Rant for the Day

Okay... Once again, I'm going to rant on my personal semi-anonymous forum, that often makes me completely regret publicly saying what I think... But I need to vent... And this is my 2 inches of worldwide internet space... So here I go!

Things that are okay to say to a friend that is more athletic than yourself:
1. How do you get "X" body part to look that way? It looks great.
2. How often do you workout? It's obvious that you work hard.
3. I'd really like to get more fit. Would you consider suggesting some workouts, working with me, showing me how you do this, that, or the other?

Comments to ANNOY a person more athletic than yourself:
1. I love the way "X" body part looks on you. I wish I was born with "X" like that.
2. (Even better! follow the above phrase up with:) Do you think swimming and biking help that? Because there's no way I plan to swim or bike, but I'd love my "X" to look like yours.
3. Watch what you eat? C'mon! Like you really need to worry about that.
4. Guess what? I only had McDonald's ONCE last week! Aren't you proud of me!!!?
5. Gosh I sure wish I looked like you. Unfortunately I can't go running with you this Sunday or the next three Sundays because I have to get my nails done and then get a massage. But boy do I wish I could look like you.
6. You worry too much about what you eat and working out. You need to relax. I wish I looked like you.
7. You worked out yesterday. Do you really need to workout today? What's it really matter? Loosen up! I wish I looked like you.


Grrrrrrr..... Some people get it.... Some people don't....

Not quite a race report

If you have a blog, you fully understand that your brain is always on blog alert... "Hey, that would be fun to blog about." So I had today's post all set to go in my head. I kept the title that I intended, because I fully intended to write a race report type blog of my experience standing in line for the American Gladiator tryouts...

Here we are at 8:15 in the morning.

This is the line that we were waiting in for the next four hours. It moved about 10 feet every 15 minutes. We stood in that line until almost noon.

At noon, we finally made it into the building. We stood in that line for almost two hours. It weaved up a set of stairs and down a hallway that wasn't actually that long.Then we stood in line for over 3 hours on the track above all the action down below.

And then came the fun part. The try-outs!

I fully intended to talk about things like the people in line... Because you kind of get to know the people around you when you stand in line with them for almost ten hours. Although half the people that started in line with us, never stuck it out to finish in line with us. There was the girl that flew in from Seattle and did warm-up and stretch routines every hour with the hope that maybe we would actually audition in the next hour. (Ha!) And the boys behind us that drove in from Kansas early that morning, stood in line for 5 hours, and then without actually trying out, decided to drive back to Kansas (Huh? Wha?). I was going to post on how Tim and I left completely pumped on a total high because we had so much fun. Yeah... Just ask me what I did this weekend. I dare ya! (Only to get called out by my husband because he remembers talking to me on the phone at noon when I was still standing in line, and then again at 3 in the afternoon when I was still standing in line and gave in to the idea that one more hour just wasn't going to happen.) But in the end, it really was a lot of fun and very worth standing in line all day.

So yeah... I had planned to do all that fun blog stuff... But now I have something better to blog about...

I GOT THE CALLBACK!!!!!!!! I have an on-camera interview on Tuesday. I probably can't disclose too much more because I've already signed a bunch of legal papers and it sounds like they need me to sign even more... But nonetheless, wish me luck!

Living life with no regrets

I figured it out! How do you follow-up an Ironman and beat the post-big-event depression?

Yeah baby! Yes, it's true, I stood in line for almost 10 hours to be on a reality tv show... Yep, never thought that would happen... But I don't regret it for a second. Yee-haw!!!!!!! I definitely have new respect for the long try-out lines on American Idol. Yes, it was long, but the people watching and eavesdropping was a blast.

Today I tried out to be on American Gladiators! How awesome is that!!!!!!!? It all started with my assistant principal egging me earlier this week. She had heard they were doing a casting call in the Denver area. She said I was the one person in her mind that could do it. She thought it would be great to get my whole school behind me. I just laughed at her. But then I went home and thought about... I laughed some more, but I entertained the idea. Hmmmm.... I asked my husband... He didn't laugh. I asked my brother, he didn't laugh. I knew my husband had to work, but I knew somebody else that would be AWESOME on that show. My husband's best friend runs, lifts, and does martial arts. The guy has NO body fat! He is solid muscle. He wasn't home, so I talked to his wife... She didn't laugh at me either! As my husband put it, "You're the only one that's laughing about it." Tim calls me back. He loves the idea! Tim was a great person to spend 10 hours in line with, too.

On Friday, I told several teachers and students that I was going to do it. (No backing out now! The accountability piece was now in place!) You know what? I think I was by far the most popular teacher in the school by the end of the day Friday! When I told my students they starting roaring and throwing fists in the air. Yeah! Go teacher! I love my kids! I still don't know who did it, but somebody hung a huge 'Good Luck' banner at the school exit for all to see. EVERYbody saw it by the end of the day! I was receiving well wishes and highfives from everybody! Ha! I think I received more whoop-la for trying out for this than I did for doing my Ironman! I couldn't believe it!

On a more serious note, I always wanted to make a difference in my kids lives by being a great teacher. As it turns out, I think my best teaching moments are occuring not from hours of lesson planning, but by telling stories about things that have nothing to do with school. I told my students that I didn't think I could do an Ironman, but I tried, and I did it. I know my chances are slim to be on this tv show, but I'm going to give it a shot, even if people laugh at me. My students were so supportive. I told them that I want them to remember me later in their life if there's ever something they want to do, but they're afraid they can't do it or somebody might laugh at them. Would you believe my students were hooked on my every word when I gave them my little pep talk? This has been one of the most rewarding years of my teaching career. I really do love my job as a teacher.

Tim and I stood outside in the cold for 4 hours.

We stood in line inside for 5 1/2 hours.

I told myself to keep it fun but somehow I still had race nerves. I had the same pre-race butterflies. I made the extra trips to the restroom. The five minute physical test was harder than I expected. It was a blast. Thanks for sharing this great day with me Tim! I'll post some of his pictures tomorrow. The pictures here were taken from the casting story at 9news.com.

Today, I like me. I like knowing that I've lived a full life. I like that I do crazy things that other people want to do, but for whatever reason, they won't. Don't be that person! Are you living a full life?

Why I won't leave...

Okay mom... Beyond a certain person whose name starts and ends with the letter "G", here's the other reason I'll never move home.

This is Waterton Canyon.
It is 15 minutes from my house. It is a fire road that is only open to foot and bike traffic. It goes back almost 7 miles. More often than not, it is my favorite local place to do my long runs. It's not unheard of for me to have to dodge a bighorn sheep running down the road. (Which by the way, is the reason they don't allow dogs in the canyon. Can't take a dog to my favorite running spot? Another reason not to get the dog. Sad, I know.)

Since I'm not really in shape to do a 10 mile run right now, I grabbed my mountain bike and, well, why the heck not? I grabbed my camera. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon. Ahhh!!!!!!!!!!! Just what the doctor ordered!

Puppy b-control

Oh... To get through these mid-winter blues...

And the funny part is that I'm not alone. I'm struggling through the post big event, what do I do now? syndrome--coupled with a bitter cold winter that's kept me indoors far more than I'd like... But it's good that I have some of the best girlfriends in the world. Turns out I'm not alone this winter. A week ago a couple of my best gal pals in the world stayed up til the wee hours of the morning sharing lots of fun stories. Yep, I'm not alone.

Yesterday... A beautiful (FINALLY!) winter day in the 50's, two other great gal pals go for a run. They, too, share in their own mid-winter blueness... Only they helped me a little....

You see, in all my winter blueness, I've been seriously considering getting a dog. While I get no support from my husband on this matter (he's not a big dog or cat person), I know that if I gave a heartfelt plea, he would give in...

So... The run this morning. Girl 1 has two dogs that are pulling and tugging ridiculously at the idea of a walk/run. I've run many times with Girl 2 and her dog. Both girls finally give the dogs the freedom they desire... The dogs get let off their leashes... HEAVEN! Until we see another dog owner, another runner, a cow on the trail (seriously!) and every time we have to stop, leash them up, unleash them, go. Dog 2 has previously come close to taking me out at the knees as he comes up between myself and girl 2 with a very large dead tree in his mouth. Dog 1 goes to the bathroom and then sends up gravel in full projectile style with his back legs when done. I have to put up my arms to defend myself...

Hmmm.... This dog thing. Everytime I'm almost sold on it... I'm not so sure.

I did make a comment to girl 2 about how I worry that I won't want to take my dog for a walk after a long hot summer several hour bike ride. She argued with me that I'd love to go for a walk after a nice bike ride. I realized she's never been on her bike for longer than 2 hours in one session her entire life. Girl 1 told me I'd just have to switch from triathlete to runner exclusively. I'm not ready to do that. Hmmm.... The dog debate continues.

SOLD OUT!!!!

What!!!!? The Triple Bypass sold out on January 11!!!!!? Can you believe that? It's a monumental bike tour over three mountain passes, 120 miles, in one day. I did it three years ago with my Iron pal Amy, and we signed up two weeks prior.

It IS my husband's turn to participate and have me sherpa, so he missed registration last year because it sold out March 3. This year he knew he should sign up soon, but apparently he wanted me to sign up with him. I wanted to give it another month to see what my belly might be doing. I looked yesterday. SOLD OUT! Unbelievable! I can name off five friends that were also interested in doing it this year. It would have been a blast! Has the Evergreen Cycling Club created an event that will soon rival the two hour Ironman sell outs? Wow!

So what now? Is this a sign that we better sign up for the Boulder Peak and 5430 series ASAP? Crazy athletic Coloradoans. I love this state.