About

Who am I?  Good question.  I’m actually still trying to figure that out myself, but in the meantime this is what I KNOW about myself.  I am an active triathlete/runner who believes in eating what I want, but in moderation.  I LOVE almost all types of food.  I LOVE cycling, running, swimming, rock climbing, yoga, and anything outdoors!  I am currently a grad student getting my masters in environmental engineering via the University of Florida.  I am also an indoor cycling instructor at the gym on base.  My husband and I live in Germany (he is in the AF).  We have another 6 months left here.

Here is a brief overview of my journey on the road to being healthy and fit… I was a total nerd in high school.  I tripped a lot, and was very clumsy (I still do now, but surprisingly not as much )  I never “worked out.”  My workouts were acting on stage, stage managing, participating in speech and debate, and playing in the marching band (freshman year).  I starting working at a pizza place my sophomore year of high school, and pretty much continued to eat what I wanted.  I didn’t gain a lot of weight at this point, but didn’t have a “firm, strong body.”  I tried out for the swim team, and didn’t make it.  I was crushed especially since they were pretty much taking anyone.  I simply didn’t have the right technique.  I gave up sports, and continued with drama and speech and debate.  I loved being involved in those things, but I always felt like something was missing.

My sophomore year of college is when I realized that I gained the “freshman 15.”  My roommate that I just moved in with happened to be an aerobics instructor with a great body, and she asked me if I’d like to go the gym with her.  I reluctantly said yes as I was very apprehensive since I’d never been to a gym before.  I didn’t want to look like I didn’t know what I was doing.  I couldn’t even run a mile on the treadmill when I first started going, but I kept going.  I kept noticing the changes in my body, and I was intrigued.  Why hadn’t I started this earlier??!!  Well, not working out pretty much ended there!  I got a road bike for Christmas and started riding that 24 miles round trip to school twice a week, and ran a few 5K’s.  The pool still haunted me at that point.

When I got out of college, I signed myself up for half marathon in an effort to keep myself healthy when I started my engineering job.  I found out later that it is actually one of the most difficult half/full marathons in the states—The Whiskey Row Half/Full Marathon.   This is a pic of me right before I ran it! We had to climb 1600 feet in the first 8 miles!  Yikes!!  It was soooo hard, and I thought that I was going to die, but I made it through!  After I crossed the finish line, I broke down and started crying.  I am sure that my friend who ran it with me thought I was a freak. I couldn’t believe that I pushed myself through the pain to accomplish running a half marathon.  I was hooked after that.

Fast forward  2 years, 3 more half marathons, 2 more 5K’s, 2 Triathlons (click here for my race report on the last one), and a few weird team scavenger hunt races, and I couldn’t be happier.  It was a little hard finding races at first when I moved to Germany 2 years ago, but now I’m finding more and more.  I also started noticing that my times were decreasing when I ate healthier.  Last year was a great year, and with my new nutritional knowledge and enthusiasm for the sport, I can’t wait for next running/ tri season!

The reason why I wanted to start blogging was to not only journal my lifestyle and workouts, but to also share what I’m doing with others.  Exercise and a diet in moderation has changed my life, and if I can motivate one person to get out and move when they are not feeling like it, or to eat a vegetable that they normally wouldn’t try, I would be so happy!

This blog will consist of letting you all know what I am doing in relation to training.  I will keep an updated exercise journal including my workout shenanigans and a few tips that I have learned along the way.  In addition to fitness, I will be posting a few of my meals (not every meal of everyday) along with a few recipes.  I LOVE cooking and baking!  I’m hoping you all might be able to teach me a thing or two as well.  Plus, some personal musings added in for flavor. 

Please feel free to comment on my posts or email me at geekturnedathlete@gmail.com if you have any questions or comments!   I would love to hear what you all think!