Just Wanted to Introduce Myself (cross-posted in weight loss forum)

Hi there everyone

I'm new to the forums around here, and I mistakenly introduced myself in a forum that wasn't the Introductions forum

So I decided to introduce myself again in the appropriate forum. I tend to be a very verbose fella, so be warned before you read ahead

Also, if you read my intro in the weight loss forum, you don't need to read it here again. I just wanted to post it up in the appropriate forum is all.

It all started with the time I joined the swim team in high school. My house had a swimming pool in the backyard, and I learned quickly that I didn't really know how to swim when I took the swimming sessions in my high school P.E. class, despite being able to float and "swim" in the home swimming pool. But I'm going off-topic here, sorry. Anyway, I became a competitive swimmer and gained the much adored swimmer's body (ok, not really, but I was in the best shape of my life). Then I graduated and went to college, where I stopped physical activity completely and gained some weight and a ballooning up of my adipose cells.

Then, about 2-3 years ago, I rediscovered cycling as an adult. What a joy that was to behold! Cycling has always been, and I hope always will be, an exercise that doesn't feel like exercise at all. After tooling around on a mountain bike in the streets for a while, I decided to get a road bike, since 99% of my riding is on paved roads/streets/bike paths anyway. Of course, I didn't have enough money to buy a new road bike, so instead I bought one of the junkers left over from the 1970's Bike Boom. It still managed to carry me very long distances (20+ miles/day, but the bicycle made me want to do 100+ miles/day), and long distance riding is what I love to do with a road bike. Well, I also love to ride fast, because it's just fun to blow through the streets at 20+ MPH under my own power. I rode the bike on a daily basis and managed to lose 11 lbs. in six weeks, despite only a tiny change in my diet (I began to eat more vegetables was all). Well, a few months ago, the bicycle, being old and clunky, decided to die on me completely, leaving me feeling very depressed. So, I just stopped physical activity completely, allowing the adipose tissue to balloon up even further

Around Fall 2006, I learned about these things called "triathlons."

"Hmm...Swim, Bike, Run? I can do everything on that list except run," I thought.

The thing is, running was my least favorite exercise growing up. And I hated doing a lot of aerobic-based exercises growing up. I hated running with a passion. I was the fat kid in elementary/junior high/high school who "ran" (or more like jogged and walked) the mile runs in 16 minutes. Running always left me exhausted to the point of nausea and wanting to puke, it made me perspire in gallons of sweat, and I could never go very fast, even when I put full effort into it. I always finished my mile runs feeling like I'd been physically assaulted and abused. So I avoided running whenever I could.

But now, in an ironic twist of fate, I find myself stuck with running as the only tri-sport I have access to. What with a useless, broken down bike, and very limited access to swimming pools, I have been (grudgingly) re-acquainting myself with running ever since about February by using the "Aggressive Couch-to-5K" training program, though I didn't seriously get re-acquainted until now. What can I say? Running seems ok now. Not bad at all, but not good either. I still VASTLY PREFER cycling and swimming, though, but I don't hate running as much as I did when I was younger. I still don't understand what you runners love so much about it, though. Even 5K runs scare the beejezus outta me

As far as diet is concerned, the strangest thing about it is, junk food (and drinks) are starting to TASTE like, well, JUNK, to me now. So I tossed out any unfinished ice cream boxes and cookie jars I had in my house. I know it's not good to go cold turkey on something, but I honestly cannot stand the taste of those foods (or sodas) anymore. I'm serious

The only real problem area for my diet at the moment is in the meat and carbohydrates. I think I'm a carb addict, because whenever people try to force me into adopting an Atkins-type diet, I tend to get into a really dour mood with them.

Who knows? I may be trying out for a Sprint Triathlon soon (once I can scrounge up the funds for a new bicycle), and maybe, just maybe, I might be able to obtain a REAL swimmer's body one of these days (that's my main goal...that, and maintaining said body)