Why You Should Tri in 2009

I was going to do a top ten list, full of reasons why those of you who (for some reason or another) haven't joined us crazies in the swimming, biking, and running. FYI, the reasons included lycra and the fact that triathlon doesn't hurt nearly as bad as cyclocross.

But, after a little bit of thought, I realized that my primary testimonial for trying triathlon is way less tongue-in-cheek and way more visual. These aren't the only two reasons you should begin preparing (right now!) for a multisport event, but they're good ones.

What are those two good reasons?

Before.

After.

 

And from where I stand, that's reason enough.

A Part of the World: Appearance (Part I)

For previous entries in this series, read here and here.


I started to write this post myself.

But then I realized that I don't have a great deal of insight to bring to the subject. Like all western women, I'm conscious of my appearance. There are times when I'd like to change it. I work on "problem areas" (ahem, half-heartedly, because I don't really care). And my feelings about my body probably affect my behaviors and attitudes more than I realize (or would like to admit).

However, for this post, I wanted to invite an author and fellow blogger who has (and does) deal with issues of self-image in a more concrete and immediate way. As a result, we have a wonderful guest post from Amanda, who was kind enough to provide her insight on the matter. Amanda is a dedicated runner, a college student, and an aspiring nutritionist. She also has a great, timely post about Thanksgiving that she posted recently (for you Americans who are staring Turkey Day dead in the face). So visit her and get to know her; she's smart.

By now, you're probably familiar with Mark's Primal Blueprint, and what it means to those of us concerned about how to live in this world.  I think of my body as the part of the Earth that I most directly affect.  I can change it, move it, use it to do things that are good for the Earth.  In that way, it is dynamic.

But it is also static, in the sense that when other people see it at any given time it is like a picture, something at which they have to look, and something that can only look one way at any given time.  And I have never seen any sense in not making it the best picture possible. In this respect, my body is property -- it is my "yard," if you will.

Have you ever passed a (literal) yard that was ugly, unkempt, or simply not aesthetically pleasing?  Overgrown and an eyesore?  Did you judge the yard negatively?  This is what I do not want people to do to me.  Judge me negatively based on my body.  Judge me by my property and how I maintain it.

So when I look down and see that my body does not meet others' expectations or standards (real or perceived), I feel like a failure.  Shouldn't my tummy look the way "a tummy" should?  We all deal in images, in patterns, and if my tummy does not fit the specifications of "a tummy" laid out by society, then it is not "a tummy" any longer.  It is not a "big tummy" or a "tiny tummy," but an eyesore, a failure as a human being, just as something that looks like a field in front of a house is not a field but a gross, unkempt yard.  To me, such a failure is akin to being given a small plot of land (by the Powers that Be, by the Earth, by whatever it is you believe in) and have let it go to waste, to ruin.  Because I do not meet the specifications for "human" laid out by society, I am no longer human.  And that, for me spiritually, is a death sentence.  It is a lack of definition, and without definition or identity, I feel (as many would) that I am nothing compared to what I could be as my best human self, what I believe I was intended to be.

And I realize that my physical appearance, and even my entire physical manifestation inside and out, is just a snapshot of who I am, of my humanity.  So in that respect, I could "cut myself slack" if my property was not the most beautiful -- after all, there are other dimensions of me and of my humanity, right?

But my body is not just my property, or my yard: it is also a tool.  It is both currency and a signal to everyone who sees me.

When my mother used to help me with projects for school, she'd always tell me, "Presentation is everything."  I feel that
he same holds for our physical appearances.  People rarely think "Is she a doctor," or "Is he Catholic?" when seeing a person for the first time.  Observations -- and judgments -- are made based on physical appearance.  If you're pretty and slender, you get things other people don't.  Free drinks.  More opportunities.  Presentation affects the way your teachers, coworkers, boss, love interests, friends, and enemies view you.  If your best friend became goth, what would you think?  Would you view him/her differently?  If your best friend gained 100 pounds, what would you think?  Would you view him/her differently?  These are all physical aspects of your friend, and surely you care about and appreciate the other aspects, but even to you -- who is not judging your friend based on his/her initial appearance, I would be surprised to hear you say that your friend's physical appearance doesn't matter at all or doesn't at least provide you with some new opinions about your friend.  Now, take that same friend -- how would those seeing your friend for the first time judge him or her?

Your physical condition and your presentation says a lot about you, and discrimination against people based on physical traits (including weight) is not news.

Finally, and along the same lines, your physical appearance is also a signal, telling others about -- among other things -- your socioeconomic status, the cleanliness of your lifestyle, your upbringing, profession, religion, age group, sexual preferences, and outside interests and hobbies.  It is an indicator of nearly everything about you, simply because meeting you begins with seeing you, and is the first indicator of you as an entire person (in all your varied dimensions) that other people have.  They have to make initial judgments based on your appearance and do judge based on your appearance.  Racism, sexism, and weightism are just a few of the ways people discriminate and stereotype, simply because humans are pattern-oriented creatures.  And while this says something about humans and humanity and the way we operate, it has definitely been a cause of stress in my life, as my obsession with perfecting my appearance has taken me to the point of anorexia in previous years.  But this is, of course, my human struggle.  Even the classic novel Candide ends with a call to "cultivate our gardens."  So sometimes I wonder...how much is too much?

Many thanks to Amanda for sharing her ideas and experience. Check back later this week to read my personal opinions (read: Ishmaelian analysis) of the appearance question.

A Part of the World

As you may remember, I've just finished reading this book, and have been thinking constantly about what it means to live as part of the world, rather than in opposition to and dominion over it. My conclusion? Big, big, big changes are required. Perhaps too big for me to handle. Perhaps too big for the world to handle.

In these kinds of circumstances, I find it's best to make changes that are small, personal, and immediate. Is the world worth saving? And can it even be done? Hmm . . . jury's still out on that one (at least for me). But I do know that I can live slightly closer to being part of the world, and so can you. Here are three ways how:


Biomechanics
It came up in the pronation article. Whether you believe we evolved or were created, it's clear that our bodies were designed for a specific purpose. That purpose does not include wearing high heels or walking on concrete. Pavement and shoes separate us from the earth. Walking barefoot and working against the degeneration caused by not walking barefoot brings you that much closer to the original design. Pattern. Whatever. And that works in other parts of the body, as well. Strive for balance and stability in your body.

Appearance
As I mentioned before, I think that when you start to see your body as the enemy, as something that needs to be slimmed down (which basically means you need to eliminate part of it), you're falling into a trap of conquering your body. And guess what! If you win the battle against your body, you also lose. But the same is true of bodies that are, how shall I say, facing the opposite problem. Your body was meant to be lean and muscular, to a certain extent, because that's what hunting and gathering does to you. So instead of focusing on weight loss or gain, perhaps we should be looking at overall health. Not "skinny"--healthy.

Eating
Which brings me to the final point. Know something? Our bodies were not made to handle high fructose corn syrup. In fact, they weren't made to handle a lot of the things we put in them. So stop putting that shit in, already. Eat clean. I suppose you could argue that the way we're meant to eat is raw and vegetarian, but I disagree. The whole premise here is that we live and eat by the laws of nature, and one of those laws is to eat what you can find. You hunt. You gather. Sometimes there's slim hunting and you have to gather a little bit more to get fed. Sometimes there's slim gathering and you have to eat a lot of meat. Either way, my personal opinion is that we're designed to eat both, so I eat both. Besides, I was a raw vegan for a few weeks. Definitely wasn't working for me.

So that's the short version. If you believe that we have a responsibility to adjust the course of civilization, you now have three ideas of how to do it in your life. Small-scale. But these are just notions, right now. So over the next few weeks, I'll be digging more deeply into the practicals--how do we make these changes? What can be different in my life? And why does it matter?

Not sure, yet. I'm thinking about it. I'll let you know.

An Experiment

I'm not sure how I came to this decision.

I have decided to try out a raw foods diet for one month, just to see how it feels. I've been looking at some recipes and stuff. Looks pretty hard core. One of my primary concerns is that I won't be able to properly fuel my body for training and competition. But most of the proponents of raw food (who strike me as a little nutty, honestly) claim to have more energy, so we'll see.

However, I am concerned about when I should start this. I'd like to do it during my base building phase, since I'm absolutely sure that I'll lose a significant amount of weight, and I've read that it's best to lose weight during base phase, rather than specific prep or competitive phases. But that doesn't give me as much time to prepare as if I waited until, say, April.''

Currently, I'm thinking about starting for the second half of March, which will give me two weeks during base and two weeks during specific prep. And we'll see what happens.

Thoughts?

Recipe: Quick Chili

I work a lot. And when I'm not working, I'm generally working out. Often, that leaves me very little time or energy for cooking. So when I find something that tastes awesome and takes about 5 minutes to make . . . Well, it's about time for a recipe, anyway.

Quick and Easy Chili

1 can chili beans
1 can tomato sauce
1 can green chilies
2 tbsp cocoa powder

Chili seasoning
Salt
Pepper

Yeah, I think that's all that I put in it. Start by combining the first three ingredients in a saucepan. After it's started warming up, add in your cocoa powder, then start throwing in seasoning a little bit at a time until it tastes the way you want. Be sure that you add it just a little bit at a time; after it's in, you can't take it out! See? Quick and easy (and delicious)!

The chili gives you a total of 135 calories. Yeah, not a lot. Split it into two servings (which is what I did) and you only get 67 calories. I had half of it over angel hair spaghetti--which was awesome!--and the other half over rice. If you want healthier, keep to whole grain spaghetti or brown rice. Either way, you really need to have it with something in order to get enough energy to consider it a meal. But it's great for weight-loss, because it's very filling without many calories. And this is the kind of thing that will freeze really easily, so I can make a ton of it and then have it on hand to grab as I run out the door in the mornings.

Full nutrition info:

135 calories
1 g fat
880 mg sodium
230 mg potassium
25 g carbohydrate
7 g protein
6% RDA vitamin A
4% RDA vitamin C
4% RDA calcium
12% RDA iron