i am pretty happy to see the last of 2014. although i had a great year in the amount of races i finished the rest of the year fairly sucked and could possibly be one of my worst. molly died and it will be a long time before that hurt gets any easier to deal with. i had two weeks leave over christmas which was a very welcome break. it gave me time away and an opportunity to catch up around the house. and a chance to switch off and relax. there were alot of nana naps. what i have decided is that if i want to be a victim then i can keep going down this path and put up with things that are convenient for others but make me very unhappy and very stressed. and i can remind myself that i can do whatever it is that i want to do and i do not have to consult anyone in any decision i make. of course when it comes to paying the bills there are limitations and that is all a part of making that choice. how much am i willing to put up with or give up when it comes to the pay cheque ? so i need to make a decision and i need a plan. i do not want to waste this life and i choose to not be around people who are just fucking mean. so this year is going to be the year of change. i do not want to get 10 years down the road and still be on the same path. 
however for the next few months the only thing i will be thinking about is ironman australia. this weekend it is a short 9 weeks till the big day. this is going to be a fantastic event. it is a tough course, the home of ironman in australia and the 30th anniversary. i have gone back to my old coach and the programme is different and hard. the next 5 weeks will be like the training of truth. some days i am loving it and others i am totally over it. i have mixed things up a bit and completed a few more open water swims. i bought a new wetsuit (blueseventy helix) and love it. i went down to busselton and did the half marathon on the saturday and the jetty swim the next day. both of these are fantastic events and the first time i have swam around the jetty without having to worry about the bike and run ! next year i will go back and if the conditions are good i will do the swim without my wetsuit.
i have also cancelled my gym membership. i was only using it for the treadmill but the majority of my runs are all outdoors now so it was a waste. instead i have signed up with an outdoors training group. coach ironman doesnt know this but it kind of replaces the core and strength exercises i am meant to do. basically i do one session that has a focus on toning uses weights and rubber bands etc and the other is a boxing session. both have intervals and core work. i really enjoy them and it is great to mix with people - even thought they were a bit clicky at first. plus it is 10 minute walk from my house so very convenient.
i am about to leave work and head out the door for a long weekend. there will be running, biking and swimming and lots of eating and napping. the following week i am doing a five hour hilly bike event that i am excited about. i have to get to the bike shop and have my roadie tuned up and i am getting the cassette changed on the tt bike for the hills of port mac. i have been feeling very good on the bike and
using the stages power meter has put another level on it. i have also done a few time trials with the time trial association and have one more race to go but i will get into that another time.
