TriAptitude Coaching

https://www.strava.com/athletes/625021/latest-rides/1a24970941942b05f43bb51ea58e0286d2c9e3d7

I have not written in awhile and I feel both happy and sad about that.  Writing for me is therapeutic and lovely and healing and emotional.  It fulfills a need for me to release negativity and refocus on the positives of life.  But, there are also times when it is hard to find the time and energy to put into words what is happening here.  At times, there is so much happening so rapidly and with such force that I fight to get to the end of the day to fall sound asleep in bed like a rock hitting the bottom of a stream.  Sure, I know that it would have been good for my heart and my soul to express my emotions on paper but at the same time, I think that freedom away from worries is wonderful and can be just as therapeutic.  Some time has passed and I took a step away. Now, I am back and ready to chat about all the fun and excitement in the Culligan household during the past few months.  But, most interestingly for my readers here is my decision to set a race/ event schedule for 2018 after a lot of “hemming and hawing” about what I wanted to do this coming season.  I have actually registered for several events local to Colorado and I have two bigger events planned for the end of the summer and fall. I am feeling rejuvenated and excited for all of it. And, with the beautiful weather that Colorado has had this winter, it has been easy to maintain my fitness and stay active without having to hide out in the dark basement for days on end.  I have started using Zwift on the bike trainer and that has been a great distraction on the colder and snowier days.  I love that! You can check out my Strava widget/link above if you want to check out some of the rides I have done on Zwift and to get an idea of what this program can do for your training. I’m still trying to figure it all out but that’s part of the fun for me.

But, I digress.  Race Schedule for 2018.  I decided that I wanted to have a few cycling events thrown into the mix this season so I have registered for a few cycling races, long distance cycling events,  local Olympic distance races, a National Championship and finally back to Ironman Arizona 70.3 in October.  I took a few months off from structured training after ITU Worlds in Rotterdam and I am now back at it. Since, my main goal this season is to have fun and race with friends, I have decided to self-coach in 2018 and take some of the pressure off myself.  I want to go out there and race with my heart and feel excited for every step I take.  Part of this for me is knowing that I am also able to give back to the sport of triathlon through my personal coaching and also the volunteer work I do within the multisport community.  I have started a new program at Evergreen Park and Recreation District called Multisport Conditioning. We are now in our second session of this 12 week program and it has proven to be quite popular and I absolutely love teaching it.  I was also asked to be a USA Triathlon National Ambassador for 2018. This will give me a chance to speak publicly about my experiences in triathlon and hopefully inspire some athletes to sign up for a triathlon for the first time this year! And, of course, I am coaching my one on one athletes through Mile High Multisport here in Denver!

I am also very honored to have been asked back as an ambassador and race team member for the Betty Designs team in 2018.  I had a wonderful experience with this group of women in 2017 and I look forward to another fun filled year with the Betty Squad.  Be on the lookout for some awesome new race kits coming your way at an event near you this season!!

As I started writing this blog entry, I decided that I really did not need to give a family update for you all. Most of you are Moms/Dads and face the same balancing challenges I do every single day. We are all in this together – you can just use your imaginations and visualize some of the fun that has happened at our house this holiday! LOL!  But, in all seriousness, I do plan to write a book in the near future and my husband says that I have to keep some of the humorous episodes to myself so that someone will want to buy the book. He’s afraid that I am giving away all the page turning in my blog 😉  I highly doubt that…….

Take care, my friends. Stay positive, focus on your strengths, build up those around you, smile, give hugs and when the going gets rough…let it roll off you as you embrace the lessons to be learned from the challenge.  xoxo