I swear I did that many yesterday.  It was brutal.  It was something completely different from my last 18 Saturdays.  I did a bootcamp.  If you don’t know what a kettle bell swing  is – here is a link http://www.menshealth.com/fitness/eow-kettlebell-swing .  Recently I have gotten away from any type of core/strength training work so while there is a break in coaching on Saturdays I thought a bootcamp would be a fun change.  I can really use some strengthening in my hammies, glutes and lower back.  I followed the bootcamp up with a short hill run and a swim.  I’m hoping these all round efforts will build some strength for those NY marathon hills. Today, the next day, I’m sore but not so sore that I can’t function :). Doing some things out of your comfort zone can only make you stronger!

I’m also complimenting this bootcamp / strength training strategy with a 26 day paleo type diet.  Not a diet to lose weight but a diet to gain strength.  So far its going ok but I have fallen off the wagon once or twice.  Last night I was at a birthday party and well, drank beer.  Then early this morning I woke up with a blood sugar of 60 and had some glucose tablets and a cliff block.   If I can follow it 80% of the time I will be happy.  Today is a new day! I followed a paleo diet once before and I honestly think my body did feel better.  So I thought I’d try it again.

Yesterday I watched the amazing battle of the women competing in the ironman world championship in Kona.  As I was thinking about this post I thought about Leanda Cave,   Caroline Steffan and Rinny battling it out to be 2012 IM world champion.  I wonder how many times that day they were outside of their comfort zone.  What an amazing race. I think about Natascha Badman who at 46 came in 6th overall. How many times this year did she get outside of her comfort zone in order to pull off such an amazing performance.  This led me to think about my friend Linnea who year after year competes in Ironmen and places in her age group.  She has competed in at least 20 of them, how many times did Linnea have to get out  of her comfort zone in order to perform so well.  She is responsible for planting the ironman seed in my brain as I watched her compete in 1 of her first IM world championship races in Hawaii nearly 10 years ago, where funnily enough I watched the very same Natascha Badman compete and if I recall correctly she won that year. Finally I think about fellow Vision Quest triathlete Rhonda  who at the age of 56 and cancer survivor placed 3rd in her age group at Ironman Wisconsin.

I’m all about comfort but sometimes you just need to try something different.

I thought this a pretty interesting fact:

In bullfighting there is a term called querencia. The querencia is the spot in the ring to which the bull returns. Each bull has a different querencia, but as the bullfight continues, and the animal becomes more threatened, it returns more and more often to his spot.
As he returns to his querencia, he becomes more predictable. And so, in the end, the matador is able to kill the bull because instead of trying something new, the bull returns to what is familiar. His comfort zone.”