When I registered this past week, I did not feel the anxiety that most people probably do when they sign up for a 140.6 mile event. I know the training will be hard, I will probably cry at times, and there will be times that I will want to change my mind about the whole thing.

As I sat at my computer and got ready to hit "REGISTER" I stopped for a moment. I closed my eyes and thought of the promise I made to Justus on September 11th, 2015. As I cried tears into his fur in his last moments, I told him that I would "do the damn thing" and do an Ironman in 2016. I told him I would make him proud. I told him I knew he would be behind me every step of the way. So before I hit the button to make it official, I grabbed a picture of Justus, kissed his little face, turned his photo toward the computer, took a deep breath and clicked the button. I set the picture down and leaned back. I felt at peace with my decision. Even a few days later I am thinking, "Why do I have to wait until October!?!?" Ironman is about the journey, not just the destination. My training plan starts six months out from race day. I will complete a training plan to get myself ready for the volume that will begin at the beginning of April. I am determined to make 2016 a completely different year from 2015.
