Many people are overwhelmed at the concept of starting an exercise program. My advice to you is to keep it simple. There is a plan out there for everyone. By starting out with manageable goals there is a greater likelihood that you will stick to your plan. Strive for a balanced attack on fitness which consists of both approved strength training and aerobic conditioning programs.
Choose the right plan!
Set the right goals!
Achieve maximum potential!
I’m doing a talk for a local triathlon club early next year. Among the many points I hope will resonate is that this stuff isn’t about how many medals you collect or what your M-Dot tattoo looks like.
It’s not about your time compared to someone else’s. It’s not about the price of your ride, how many functions your GPS has or PRs.
It’s not about which coach you hired or what your training mileage looks like. While that all may seem important, it’s not.
It’s about what you can learn about yourself in the process. Its about evolving. Its about self awareness. And self actualization. It’s about what you can give back.
It’s about humility first and pride second. And all of those accomplishments are carried on the inside. Be proud. But be humble.
I felt it was time to jump into something a little different. So next year I thought it would be fun to take part in Big Climb Philly and climb the tallest building in the city. This is a Leukemia & Lymphoma Society event and our efforts go to LLS’s funding of treatment options for those living with blood cancer. Pretty close to home, huh? You can join in on the fun or support me with a modest donation. And thank you!!
Click HERE for my fundraising site.
Well another NYC marathon is in the books. This weekend marked my 7th time running the Big Apple and my 26th marathon overall. All 7 of my NYC marathons have been for the charity Grassroot Soccer, a charity founded by my good buddy and fellow cancer crusher Ethan Zohn. This year was another memorable adventure. And while every marathon brings with it a unique brand of hurt, knowing that you are having a positive impact on someone or something in this universe that is much bigger than your hurt – makes it all palatable.
This year our group raised over $100,000 (and counting). That’s enough to empower 2,000 young people with our life changing soccer-based programs in sub-Saharan Africa. We are changing lives, and that feels good. The marathon weekend was the perfect combination of family, friends, excitement, endorphins, satisfaction, and reward. Many thanks go out to all of the volunteers of the race and to the staff and volunteers at Grassroot Soccer who make all of this possible. GRS enables me to realize my dreams; which just so happen to create life changing opportunities for others. Win – win.
As always a very special thank you goes out to my forever partner and wife of 29 years, Mary Grace for her unwavering support of everything that I do. And again, a special thank you to my sister in law and her husband and family for their love, support, and hospitality on race weekend.
Next up is the half marathon in Philadelphia on November 22nd, followed by some holiday regrouping and 2016 planning. Stay tuned!
In less than two weeks, I will be making the trek to Orlando Florida to take part in the 25th running of the Great Floridian Triathlon or “GFT” as it’s known in the triathlon world. This will be my third trip to Clermont to race GFT, and this year will be special on many levels. GFT was my first iron distance race, and while there have been many more since then, GFT will always be a very special and magical place for me. To date, I have 12 ironman finishes. To some, that may seem like a lot. To some, that may sound insanely stupid. And in comparison to many of my friends who have raced 20 and 30 ironman events, I’m the rookie of the bunch. To me, it’s just a meaningless number. And the reality is, in the grand scheme of things – “how many”, or even “if” mean nothing.
I began my racing “career” in the mid 1980s and on some level, I’ve had the concept of ironman on my brain since then. In the beginning it was a far off pipe dream bucket list item. But then when the marathons, century rides, and short course events started to add up, ironman turned from a dream to a plan. Since 1999 I have been actively racing, training, writing, talking, or thinking about ironman. Racing 140.6 miles for that long, and that many times has taught me a lot about myself. I learned much more about what this all means in the couple of races where I DNF’d than in the 12 that I finished.
I’ve lived a lot of life during that time. I’ve also experienced some great losses during that time. Much of it while battling my own (2006) leukemia diagnosis. And all of that has left a positive imprint on me. And all of that has made me a better man.
I had an incredibly fulfilling moment of self-realization about two weeks ago. And after discussing it with my family, and receiving their blessing, it drove home the sensibility and the “rightness” of that moment. The bottom line is that I am emotionally tired of thinking about ironman and have made the decision that this year’s GFT will be my last 140.6. I don’t have anything left to give it, nor does it have anything more to give me. Ironman has been an incredible experience, and I am incredibly blessed and thankful for all of it. But it’s time to move on.
Don’t misinterpret me and think that I will be retreating to the couch. That notion is far from reality. I will just redirect my energy back into the marathon and even ultra-marathon events, and limit my triathlon escapades to nothing longer than the 70.3 distance. XTERRA and Powerman are also races that have always been on my bucket list. There are a ton of other really cool races and destinations that will still fuel my fire without being enslaved to thinking about and processing “ironman”. And I want to walk away from it on my terms.
Since making that decision, and receiving that confirmation from my family, I felt as though a huge weight was lifted and a sense of calm was restored.
The people that I met at my first Great Floridian have always been an extended family to me. I’ve kept in touch with many of them over the years. The fact that I am going back to Florida to race my last 140.6 at the same venue, and with some of the same people that I raced my first with, is purely poetic to me. I feel like this will wrap a big ribbon around 140.6 and allow me to rest it proudly on the shelf.
Of course….I do reserve the right to rescind everything that I just said at some point. But I honestly don’t think that’s going to happen. I feel too good about this. I’m looking forward to a great trip to Clermont, followed by the NYC marathon the following week, and the Philly half marathon three weeks after that. From there, I will start to put the pieces together of what the post ironman race calendar will look like. And trust me, it will be fun. And I will enjoy every step of the new journey.
Train safe. Race smart. Thank the volunteers.
This is the email that participants registered for Ironman Maryland received.
Dear IRONMAN Maryland Athletes,
Due to projected flooding from abnormally high tides, heavy rain, wind, and the expected impact of Hurricane Joaquin, IRONMAN Maryland will not take place this Saturday.
Given the severity of the expected weather conditions, which may – depending on the path of Joaquin – require the evacuation of certain coastal regions on the Delmarva Peninsula, we cannot guarantee that public safety officials will be able to provide the support necessary for the safe execution of our event.
The safety of our athletes, volunteers, spectators, and staff is our number one priority.
We are asking all athletes to not travel to Maryland since forecasts expect heavy weather impact in the area. We are tentatively planning and have tentative approval to have the race take place on Saturday, October 17; however, no final decision can be made until the effects of the storm are fully assessed.
We appreciate your understanding and will be in further communication with you by 6pm EST next Tuesday, October 6, 2015.
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I recently had the opportunity to talk to a group of swim camp participants at the Ridley High School in Delaware County PA. There was a wide range of ages present from 9 – 14 and then some coaches and parents sat in as well.
After talking about my background and experiences regarding sport, cancer, and life, I offered up a few nuggets of advice that I wish I had a better grasp of as a kid. It went something like this…
You have your athletic, personal, and professional lives ahead of you. For that matter, you have the whole world in front of you and the ability to do whatever you want with that. You are defining your own you right this minute. This time right here, right now lays the groundwork for how you will react and respond to the many situations that life will throw at you. This time right here, right now is defining who you will become.
The good news is you are 100% in control of all of it, based on the choices you make.
Don’t ever be afraid to work so hard at something that you fail. Whatever you do in life, do it big. Leave nothing out there in the pool, or on the field, or in the classroom. Don’t play things “safe” all the time. It’s an empty feeling to look behind you and feel like you could have and should have given more of something.
Don’t ever be afraid to move outside of your comfort zone and take risks. You have plenty of safety nets in this world in your families, coaches, teachers, etc. They won’t let you fall too far and will always be there to help you up. Explore new things. Try new things.
Don’t ever be afraid of being afraid. We all experience fear. Being afraid doesn’t make you weak. The biggest and bravest men and women all know fear. Fear is just another opportunity to be great. Let fear motivate you – not limit you.
Surround yourself with people who motivate you and inspire you. There are a lot of influencers out there in the world. Some are good and some are not. Choose to surround yourself with people who will make you feel good about yourself and motivate you to be the best person you can be.
Never get to big or too high up the ladder to forget how to lean down and extend a helping hand to someone else in need. It will make you both bigger.
Do something meaningful for yourself every day of your life. And when you’ve mastered that, also do something meaningful for someone else …every day of your life.
Life is full of ups and downs. Be patient with life’s challenges. Find something that you love and call it your own. Be proud. Be thankful for the people in your lives who have provided you opportunities to do really cool things. Support them, as they support you.
We ended with a great Q and A session that lasted about 20 minutes. The questions came from all ages and covered everything from triathlon training to chemotherapy. I love kids. I love people.
I reported out on social media last week that I received a good checkup with from my oncologist last Friday. While that is a very true statement, let me take a minute to elaborate exactly what “good” means. I walk out of his office at the conclusion of any appointment with an agreed upon understanding of my status and my path forward. But a lot of dialogue takes place with my doc during that visit. It’s not merely a blood stick and a “see you next time”.
Technically, my white count was a little high by “normal” standards; however my numbers were in line with MY relative “normal”. A normal WBC is typically between 5,000 – 10,000 white blood cells per microliter. (That standard will deviate slightly by source but they are all close). On Friday, mine was about 26,000. While that may appear alarming, it’s really not, given that all other counts and disease markers were in check.
I am however experiencing a few symptoms that are connected with the disease. The good news is that these are relatively minor in nature and more of a discomfort and annoyance than anything else. These symptoms are an indication that the disease is present, but not present enough to warrant any kind of chemotherapy or monoclonal antibody therapy treatment.
Without oversharing, I will explain a little about some of these symptoms because there is no doubt some of my patient buddies will dial right into this level of detail. My biggest issues relate to the number of lymph nodes that remain fairly enlarged. Nodes around my neck, groin, armpit, tonsils, and chest area are enlarged. Some of these itch, some hurt, some make swallowing a little more difficult at times. One is pulling on a nerve and tendon in my arm that leads to tingling and numbness, and other nodes just look big and don’t bother me at all.
No matter how I physically feel leading up to these appointments, the few days prior are always a little stressful because I just never know what the lab work may indicate. Dr. Shore reminds me that I put too much stock in those numbers and is good at helping me dial the expectation back and reset that normal bar. Vitals are taken, and blood samples are first drawn by the nurse. With the lab on the premises, my blood results are at my doctor’s fingertips the minute he steps into the room. So my doctor and I always go through our standing question, answer, and dialogue as he first enters the exam room.
We talk through my blood counts, we talk through my current list of issues and concerns, we have very healthy and therapeutic discussion around treatments that are in the development and approval pipelines and how bright the future looks for chronic lymphocytic leukemia patients with drugs like Ibrutinib and Treanda. On Friday we also talked about some of the things that we could do to try to wrestle down my enlarged lymph nodes. We always have good dialogue but ultimately Dr. Shore ends up putting the control back in my hands and asks, “so what do you want to do”? I often struggle with that question. In reality, I know that he knows what he wants to do. But he wants the path forward to be collaborative and mutually agreed upon, and I respect that. He has an effective way of guiding me in the direction he thinks is best for me, without dictating what he thinks needs to be done.
What I also appreciate about my relationship with my doc is that during every appointment he asks how my racing and training has been going. He fully gets my lifestyle and what’s important to me and does what he can to support this where he can. It’s important to him if I’ve noticed any changes in my training or racing efforts that may possibly have disease implications. And if so, that would have an impact on potential treatment options.
In this appointment, we agreed upon an additional round of a steroid taper (No, not anabolic). It’s an option that has been effective in the past, and one that I handle well, except for a little loss of sleep during the first couple of nights. That decision didn’t come without even more dialogue around the long term use of steroids as a treatment option. But we landed in a good and healthy place. I walked out feeling emotionally healthy and “in check”. I also walked out feeling like I had the green light to resume full bore training these last couple of months before Ironman Maryland.
In true Dr. Shore fashion, as we wrapped up our visit, he asked “so when do you want to come back?” I barely got out an audible “uhhhhhh…, ummmmm…” when he quickly replied with “OK, I’ll see you in two months”.
So there you have a brief recap of last week’s “good checkup”!
The Thing About Derek
Many of you have been following the journey of Derek Fitzgerald. Derek is a Philadelphia area cancer survivor and a heart transplant recipient who has turned obstacle into opportunity, and limitation into victory.
I first met Derek 4 years ago through The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training program where as a survivor living with chronic leukemia, I get much joy in coaching their triathlon program. Derek had been training for his first half marathon and we were connected at the race expo in Philly. His enthusiasm impressed me. And as he talked about his future goals in the endurance sports world, his dreams impressed me as well. I would quickly learn that Derek’s dreams were not dreams at all. They were calculated and well thought out plans.
As a guy who has raced over a dozen ironman triathlons and at that time 24 marathons, those kind of accomplishments don’t typically impress me very easily. But Derek impressed me. I think it was the pure joy and excitement that he radiated having been given a third chance in life.
Derek’s race resume continued to grow from century rides, to marathons, and ultimately to the ironman. I had the pleasure of coaching Derek when he again came through our Team in Training’s triathlon program. And we’ve had the opportunity to work together or support one another on a number of initiatives in the blood cancer community.
Most recently, Derek was given the golden opportunity to represent Team in Training at the Ironman World Championship in Kona. Derek represented and did so with pride. He represented TNT. He represented Penn Medicine. He represented himself. He represented his amazingly supportive family. And most importantly, he represented the one person who has made it all possible. A person he will never know, but one Derek has made it his mission to honor – his donor.
So the thing about Derek is that he has accomplished all this with a quiet and unassuming sense of humility and appreciation. Derek has given a face and yes, a beating heart, to the word miracle. He marches on to his meet his next challenge while thanking those around him who have gotten him this far.
And he does this not for accolades. He does this because he feels it’s what he needs to do. He does this because he wants people to understand that in life, all things are possible.
In life, miracle can happen. They happened to Derek Fitzgerald.