This weeks triathlon training is a rest & test week for me. Next week I'll be in a mini taper for the Feb 7th WSMR duathlon which will be a B race. Today was the first test of 4 for the week. To say I was disappointed would be an understatement. Today I completed a 1 mile Time Trial. I did this same test on the same track in Sept & pumped out a 6 minute 15 sec mile. I assumed I'd be faster today since I've been training for sprint races since November, as apposed to Ironman distances for the previous 5 years. Boy was my expectation off. I completed today's 1 miler in 7 minutes 35 minutes. Today I did a 5k TT & was 8 minutes slower. 8 minutes!!!!!!!! There's only one time in the last 4 years I was this slow. That was when I hit 256 pounds in November of 07. I'm only 220 right now, so I have no idea why I'm so slow. With my B race only 8 days away I need to be making some serious gains relatively quickly if I'm going to be competitive at all in the Clydesdale division of the South West Challenge Series. Right now there are 3 guys in my division that I know of who are much much faster than me. That's not including the dark horses or unknowns who show up each year. The 3 faster Clydes I know of right now are-
1) Jason McClure
2)David McDonald
3)George Ferland
Unfortunately I'm not talking a little faster either. McDonald & Ferland are both superior runners, which is the first time even one person in the SW Clydesdale Open division has been faster. Jason McClure is the fastest Clydesdale cyclist in the South West. He's a bad-mamm-jama on the bike. Even on one of my good days he can make up a 2 minute deficit in a sprint race on the bike easily. But then if you add the fact that for some reason I'm one minute thirteen seconds slower per mile on my usual 1 mile run & 8minutes slower on my 5 k.....I think I'm in deep doo doo. Hopefully I'll be able to pack on some serious speed the 2nd half of the season & make up some points for the series. For now I'll just show up & try & hold on for dear life!

Everyday I leave for work & my wife, daughter, & son stand at the window facing the street to wave & blow kisses to me as I peddle away on my commuter bike. It makes leaving my family more tolerable. That's one of the precious images I'll have stored in my mind until the day I die.My daughter who turns 3 years 4 months old today helps my wife pack my lunch each day. Occasionally when I get to work I'll find my daughter has snuck something special into my lunch box. The things she's put in my lunch box have ranged from Barbie dolls (some fully dressed, some without any clothes at all), stuffed animals, her favorite children's books, her cherished swim goggles, & last night she put in a baggie of plastic food she had prepared for me from her plastic children's kitchen. I think some people would be slightly embarrassed to show up to work with small girls toys in their lunch box. Especially a work place with as much machismo (machismo n. A strong or exaggerated sense of masculinity stressing attributes such as physical courage & virility) as the New Mexico super max prison. But not me. I find these things in my lunch, pull them out & show these things off to my fellow co-workers filled with pride & a heart full with the warmth that only the unconditional & innocent love from a child could bring. I pull these things out of my lunch box in front of my entire shift & say look what my baby girl packed into my lunch box today. The first few times I did this I got the expected teasing & whistles. But after awhile all the people on my shift just smiled. I can see the envy on some of their faces. The fact that my daughter would be willing to give up her favorite toys, even if only for a night touches me like very few things in my life ever has. I cherish these moments. My daughter got her Mom's heart & giving nature. I thank God daily for them. I also thank God for having my daughter take the majority of her traits from my wife;) That's a good thing because my wife is the best person I've ever met. I can be a challenge to say the least.

My daughter finished her month long swim lessons. She was the youngest in her class. This was the first step of progressive swim courses. She was one of only 4 children who was given the ok to join the next level. The next step is the Level 1 swim course. It's suggested that a child be 5 years to get into this class, or pass the pre-course. I was told that often times children as young as my daughter have to attend the pre-course a few times before testing up. But my daughter who isn't even 3 & a half yet passed on her first time. She was the youngest in the pre-course. Now she will be the youngest in the level 1 by years! Yes, I am a proud Dad today indeed!!!

Speaking of being a proud parent, my son who is 1 year 5 months old started walking on Jan 25th. He simply refused to walk for the longest time & got a late start. I wasn't worried at all. I knew he was progressing just fine in all areas, he just preferred to crawl. On the 25th he woke up & started walking all over like he'd been doing it forever. No stumbling or falling. One day he wouldn't walk at all, the next he was walking as well as my daughter. No in between. I think my son takes after me. We are both an all or nothing kind of a person. No in-between for us. We are perpetually in the stop or run mode. No in-between for the 2 of us.Thanks for tuning in, I'm out.

which anniversary poem?

Sunday is my wife & my anniversary. I found these 2 poems & was wondering which one you peeps thought I should put on the card?

Every Year
Every year that I'm with you
Is been better than before;
It's hard for me to imagine
How I could love you more.
Every year you've graced my life
Has been full of happiness;
I love your caring face,
your voice,Your tender, sweet caress.
Every year when this day comes,
I'm filled with love and pleasure;
Happy Anniversary, Cindy,
My joy, my delight, my treasure.

Perfect pairing
Dear Cindy, for me we are the perfect pairing;
Every thought of you is filled with all my caring.
You're the real live answer to my fondest dreaming,A perfect partner for a perfect teaming.
Each year I realize that it's all true;
I have the one I searched for, and it's you.
I'm lucky that I have you as my mate;
It's our anniversary; time to celebrate!

more weight loss & my family

This has been a great week! My training is still doing fabulous. & I've been perfect on my diet for the last 3 weeks. 3 weeks in a row. It was July since I was in this kind of control of my eating. When I'm more in control of my diet that's an indicator of how I feel emotionally. & things are great right now.

I was down to 219 pounds this morning! One of my goals for the year was to race my 3 A races under 220 pounds. Well, I'm under 220 for the first time in a long time, & as of yesterday I have exactly 1 month until my first A race of the year. Things are looking up.

Up until this week I was down to one pair of work pants that fit me. I got into my X-L work pants today for the first time in many months. I feel so much better on my runs now than I have since October. Like I've said time & time again "skinny isn't a body type, it's a tactical necessity." & "light isn't weight, it's speed!" I'm well on my way to living those 2 sayings again! I love it when a plan comes together.

On another subject. My wife started going back to school, so on Mon's & Wed's I have my babies all day to myself. I have been SO happy! That probably has a lot to do with me controlling my eating. There's nothing better for a persons happiness level than quality time with your children.

My son is going through a major Daddy stage right now. I love it. As long as I'm around he'll cry unless I'm holding him. Makes me all warm inside to be loved so much by someone I love so much. My wife's not so happy about that though. I've won over her Momma's boy;) My son is afraid to walk. It's not that he can't. He's just afraid of falling. So unless he's on a soft surface like a bed or wrestling mats he simply won't do it. I know when I'm trying to walk on soft surfaces, it's much more difficult to walk on than a regular surface, which proves my point. He could walk if he wanted to. It's ironic. He is afraid of falling 6 inches, which is about how far it is from his butt to the floor, but a couple weeks ago I taught him to climb a 55 foot ladder & he'll do it without hesitation or any help. But he's afraid of the short distance to the floor when standing. LOL. He's just like his old man. I'm not afraid of walking into a prison on a daily basis where I've been beaten up, almost shanked, & had my life threatened more times than I could count. But I fall apart, quake in my boots if I'm in a public place & my back is to an open room or a door. Funny, I love him even more because of his quirks than I do from his perfect qualities.



I take my daughter & son to Albuquerque jumps on the 2 days a week I have them. That's always been a highlight for me & my lil ones. All 3 of us play hard with each other until we are so exhausted we can barely move. In the last couple months my daughter who is now 3 years 4 months old has started to only want to play with the other kids while there. I've spent the last few times at Albuquerque jumps following my daughter around watching her play with kids her age & hoping the kids & their parents would go away so that she'd play with me. LOL. She's growing up. I really miss the days when she'd only want to play her Daddy, pretty much ignoring all the other people around her.

No one told me watching my children grow up would be the most rewarding & painful thing I'd ever feel all at the same time;) God is with me, & He is good. Very good indeed. He blesses me on a daily basis with much much more than I deserve. & that is the truth. May God be with you to.

my run on sentance 2 paragraph post

This year so far has started off great. I can't remember a year starting off
this well for me before. I'm back on the diet wagon. At the end of 2008 I was
236 pounds & still gaining like the world was running out of food. I'm down to 223 now. I've only missed one run & that was because my wife had to take a placement test & register for collage. Which is another wonderful thing for the new year. My wife has decided to take the extra time she has at home & take some collage courses with the hopes of getting into Dental Hygiene school in 2 years. During the 2 days a week she's in class I'll take that time to do something special with my babies. One on on time with my 2 little ones has been rare this last year. I'm very excited about the special time I'll have with my babies.


All in all things are great, I'm out of my workout & diet slump. I didn't get back on the wagon in time to be light enough to crush the 2 duathlon in Feb like I had planned. Even if I stay hard core with no cheating by the Desert Classic Duathlon on February 22nd I'll only be down to 210-215. The race on the 22nd is a qualifier for the National Duathlon championships. At 200-205 I think I had a chance to take a top 3 Clydesdale & qualify. Not at my current weight that's for dang sure. But the most important thing is that I've stopped the momentum of gaining weight & missing workouts. I'm back on track to crush my 2 most important A races of the year which is & the Jay Benson triathlon in Albuquerque May 10th & the Dog House sprint in Lubbock TX May 17. I'm very pumped up about being a sprint specialist & having some blazing speed this year. Keep your fingers crossed for me that I can get to that 200 pound mark to be as light as possible while still being able to keep my Clydesdale status.

Thanks for tuning in, I'm out!

Does God really care about triathlons?

I had a Sgt. at work last night say to me "I heard you do triathlons?" I told him with much excitement & pride about the Ironman I just completed in November in 14 hrs 36 minutes. He promptly said you don't look like someone who could do an Ironman.

I'd be insulted if it wasn't true. Fact is I'm a big fat triathlete. I complete numerous triathlons every year in spite of having a gut that hangs over my belt & have what my buddies call a "ghetto booty". I mean, I'm only 5'11 and weight 236!!!

Almost 6 years ago I weighed 300 pounds & couldn't run more than 20 yards at a time. Even in high school when I was reasonably fit I was a horrid runner. I was in the slow runners group in the military too. All that changed when I got down on my knees & prayed for God to help me. He threw triathlon in my lap almost immediately. Through Him I've found a healthy lifestyle that assists me in keeping some of my weight off. I've become a good swimmer & cyclist. But most surprising I've become a great runner. In May I ran in a triathlon that I kept up a 6 minute 15second run pace for 5 Kilometers. I then topped it off by keeping a 23.3 mph pace on the 20 Kilometer bike & an 8:30 400 meter swim. That's not me I can promise you. That's a higher power working there.

When my wife & I first got married we tried to conceive. After almost 2 years we were at whit's end. We had tried everything to have a baby. Nothing had worked. One particularly hard day after my wife & I broke down & cried my wife & I got down on our knees & prayed. We continued to put it in God's hands from that point on. A little over 2 months later we found out we were pregnant. Not coincidental timing I assure you. I ask you what is impossible through God? Miracles don't need to be a rare thing. They are possible to anyone who does what Jesus asks of us. I told my Sgt. these things & he asked & I quote "Do you really think God cares about triathlons & who races in them? I mean come on He's got bigger things in the world to be concerned about!"

I don't want to win if my only goal is to win. Even 1st place trophies eventually collects dust & are forgotten. God put me here for Him. To honor Him Jesus said the most important thing is to love God with everything we are & to love others like we love ourselves. So if I win every race & miss that then I've accomplished nothing. I think triathlon is just another way to honor God. God cares about my faith. He cares where my heart is. If I can carry my faith into triathlon then yes He cares about triathlon because He cares about me. He sent His only son to die for me so that I could live for Him. It's not just on the triathlon course I need to honor him. I need to honor Him in my relationships, in my respect for authority, at work, & when I'm at home surfing the inter-net. I'd like God to bless me so much in triathlon that people talk about what He did through me. But that means I have to give Him my best in every area of my life. If I win I'll praise Him, if I lose I'll praise Him. Either way I'll try to honor Him in my actions & my attitudes. Our attitude is the aroma of the heart. If our attitude stinks then our hearts not right. I have resolved to give God everything I've got. Then I'll leave the results to Him.
Cody Hanson

swim lessons & stuff

My daughter starts her first swim lesson tomorrow. I'll be taking her every Monday. My wife will be taking her every Wednesday since I work on those nights. While she's getting her lesson her baby brother will be able to partake in some fun in the water too! All of us are very excited about this. Should be a ton of fun.

In May my most important race for the year is the Jay Benson Triathlon. After the adult race they put on a children triathlons. If my daughter can swim 25 meters by then she'll be attempting her first triathlon race at 3 years 8 months old;) That's 4 months away & she's already asking her Mom & I when her race is, if I will clap for her, & a few other questions that only a 3 year old could make so dang cute.

The day after Christians my daughter and I built our first snow man together. We had a blast. Ended up being a very sentimental thing for me for some reason. But then again, what doesn't get sentimental when your doing a first anything with your child. Here's the pictures.

These holidays were the most fun I've ever had. By far the best Holiday of my life. Unfortunately it wasn't very good for my waist line. I'm up to 236 pounds. I've only got one pair of work pants that still fit & my wedding band doesn't fit any longer. This week I missed 3 workouts, the first time I've ever done that. This morning I felt like I had hit rock bottom. I've felt like that 2 other times. The first was right before I decided to start training for triathlons to control my weight which had gotten up to 292 pounds. The other time was last Nov when I got up to 256 & failed to finish the Silverman.

Anytime I had got to that low point I ended up kicking the diet & workouts into gear & got great results. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Getting motivated couldn't happen any sooner because my B race is the WSMR duathlon on February 7th. Only 4 weeks away. I'm to the point of do or die with that race right now.

I'll keep you updated on how the training goes for my daughter & I;) Gosh I'm excited about her lessons.