A pretty full on week for me this week with the end of semester coming up as well a fairly heavy amount of work to get done. Throw in a full on week of training as well and lets just say I am glad it is the weekend. 

I started working with someone earlier this year who wanted to lose weight. I wrote that person a weekly training program to follow and I kept it simple. An hour here or there, a little resistance training. Anything just to get this person moving. At the end of each week I would ask, "how did you go?" and for four weeks was told, "I didn't do it, I didn't have time". Now I understand that we are all busy but it made me think why is our health always the thing we don't have time for? People who are overweight always have time to eat? As I have been incredibly busy the last few weeks and have even had some cracks start to show in my study/work/training balance I have had this thought in my mind. Now I am not just talking about exercise, when I mean to say we sacrifice our health I mean we choose to buy fast food or take away because we do not have time to cook or we jump on a bus or in the car instead of the 15 minute walk to get somewhere. 

I am incredibly motivated and understand that every person is different. However, I am also someone who used to be the first one to grab Maccas on the way home or drive the 500 metres to the shops to buy a bag of chips. I always say to people that when I ride my bike I sometimes have these moments of 'absolute clarity' where I am riding hard enough that my mind is completely empty and I become aware of how amazing it is that I am able to be out riding. Well yesterday I went on a group ride with 3 of my mates and I had one of these moments. Now when I agreed to go on the ride I was a bit nervous because I had a pretty busy Saturday organised. Well at that moment on the bike yesterday I looked at my mate Rob (who signed me up for my first triathlon) and said "how good is this". I was so happy that I had made time for my health and it is those sort of moments that I think of whenever my mind starts rationalising that I am too busy or too tired. 

We are all busy, but it comes down to prioritising. I have a guy I am training at the moment who is a machine. This guy is one of the most determined people I have ever met. He trains everyday during his lunch break and then most evenings he will go back to the gym for at least 2 hours. He has chosen to prioritise his health over his favourite tv show or other things which he could be spending his time doing. It is possible, it just requires some sacrifice and like with all things, it gets easier. I train a lot but to maintain a health lifestyle I would not need to put in the hours I do. I guess what I am trying to say is that yes at first it might be tough and hard and feel impossible. But ITS GETS EASIER and the rewards are worth it. I have a quote I like to say about running but I think it is applicable to training and a healthy lifestyle "It is the hardest thing to start and once you have started, it is the hardest thing to stop.

Sorry this is a slightly more 'deep' blog this week but I think it is important. My next race is coming up in 2 weeks and I am not too sure how to approach it as it is 3 weeks before my biggest race of the year. I might go out and try and enjoy it but I also know how competitive I am against myself so I will probably end up smashing myself. Anyway, I hope you all have a great week and if someone is reading this and is thinking "He doesn't know what he is talking about or I am too busy" just try and make a little bit of time. Anything is better than nothing. See how it makes you feel, whats the worst that can happen?

Have a good week everyone and remember to TRI!

How's it going everyone? How is your training? Mine was pretty good. I got my site/blog set up, got in some decent training, did a great session with a very impressive PT client and I even had an awesome race result today so all in all pretty good week. 

I raced Sunshine Coast 70.3 in the middle week of September and since then I have been a little off in my training. Feeling flat, under performing and just generally slower than normal. What I am coming to realise is that the way you feel in training can be completely different to how you race. I was not very happy with my run split at Sunny Coast so I decided to sign up for a half marathon a couple of weeks ago. After the race I had been struggling with my run training and assumed the race would be a disaster. I was wrong, I went out and smashed a PB (previously 1:36) with a 1:25 run. I thought this was pretty random. Then I look at this week. One of my swim sessions included a 1.9km TT. I felt good in the water and was disappointed to find I swam a 33. Then today at my sprint tri I absolutely smoked the swim. I don't know what the time was as the results aren't out yet but my coach, pro triathlete Ben Hammond was leaving T1 as I came in so I know it was a good swim.

I also started with a new client this weekend. When we first started we were talking about my approach to weight loss and I started ranting a bit (I like the sound of my own voice). But I think there are two things that are important when it comes to losing weight. 1. You need to commit to a lifestyle change, you can't just decide to lose weight. What happens once you have achieved your goal? What is there to stop you going back to your old habits? 2. Weight loss is a personal journey. Someone can help you and guide you and tell you what to do but at the end of the day it is the individual who has to make the sacrifices and put in the hard work. 

Anyway that is just one of my thoughts about successful weight loss. I intend to offer you all my wisdom (for I am very wise)  as I move along with this blog.

Anyway this seems long enough. A shout out to everyone who raced this weekend, especially my Team MaccaX friends and also anyone who took their first steps towards a better and healthier life. I know how hard that first step is but I also know how many possibilities are ahead of you.

Happy Training and remember to TRI!

Tim. 

So a few weeks ago I found a photo of my competing at my first triathlon. I was shocked how big I was in the photo, I didn't realise how far I had come in terms of both weight loss, lifestyle and my racing performance. Well the photo was well received with people that I know and don't know reaching out to me congratulating me and asking me about my journey. So I figured the best bet would be to create a little site and start writing a weekly blog. The timing works out well as I have also entered Cebu 70.3 with an aim to qualify for the 2016 70.3 World Championships on the Sunshine Coast. 

So this blog will be about my training towards my goal, people who I know in the triathlon world that influence and impress me as well as my experiences with weight loss, lifestyle change and how I live my new life.

For a better understanding of my journey check out this interview here

I have also recently started increasing my personal training work so there is some information about it on this site too. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy reading about my adventures and maybe my journey will help to motivate and inspire someone out there, even if just one...

Happy racing and training and remember to TRI!