Thursday, March 28, 2013

40 some days

My days as a free spirit, doing nothing but run and play all day are over :-)

In 40 some days I am starting school...so how to prepare for school and racing? Or just school? Or do I even have time to do anything else?

During my quest to find a program in health care I also looked into PT programs in a addition to nursing...but the thought of going to school for 3 years full time, 8-5, summer and winter - that just didn't sound right for me. I think Nursing will be a great fit to combine my love for health care with my love for sports.

I am so so happy that I got into this very fast paced nursing program at NAU. Most accelerated programs are either super expensive or they go for up to 2 years. NAU is a one year program, done in May 2014. And it is affordable (some of the programs I explored at other schools were up to 50.000 $ a year) - no sitting on loans.

Now the only question was: will I have enough time to train? Swim, bike and run? 

Yesterday I signed up for my classes and to my surprise I have a day off every week :-) Classes will be held Mon/Tue/Wed and Fri, with all except for Friday being half days. I really like what I hear so far...I know in any accelerated program there will be lots of "out-of-classroom" work, but I am ready. It might take me a while to get adjusted to the new schedule but I truly believe that I can add a few triathlons for my fall break (August 8th-28th).

Luckily being a student in Flagstaff also means I have access to the track, to a brand new fitness center where I can work on my strength, flexibility or fit in a speed session on the treadmill, and a 50 meter pool that I can go to for free.

So guess what: I bought a hiking backpack that I will go to school with. So I have room for everything from books to swimsuit :-) I thought about using my ZOOT Transition bag...

Maybe I will turn into one of those kids that lives at the library...or I will do all my studying in the gym and just live there...

Anyways as of now, my racing schedule looks like I will be running in races until August and then I will jump into some Olympic and Halfironman races. Thankfully the summer in Flagstaff is beautiful and I can exercise at any time of the day. And hopefully the 7000 ft elevation will give me an extra boost while racing.



2 comments:

Beth said...

If anyone can do it all (with a smile on their face no less!), it's YOU! I'm sure you will find a great balance. Have fun with your last 40 days! :)

Damie said...

so proud of you and best of luck!!!! you can do this....I think it was a smart choice. keep us updated!