Hello! This blog has been written for a while and I am finally getting it out there. As some of you may know last fall I completed IRONMAN Wisconsin! Yes, that’s right, I have rheumatoid arthtritis and I am an IRONMAN! What is that you ask? It is an endurance event that requires you to swim 2.4 miles, then you bike 112 miles and then you run 26.2 miles, that’s right a full marathon, AFTER swimming and biking all day. All in all, this took me 14 hours and 4 minutes to complete which was better than I had anticipated doing. It was an amazing day. God answered more prayers than I can count including perfect weather, the ability to stay calm in the water and not panic when I got hit, kicked swam over etc., safety on the bike course and the energy and focus to not only finish the race in the allotted time of 17 hours, but to enjoy the whole process.

Now some of you may be crazy like me and my training partner and think this sounds like fun and others of you will just call me crazy. But what I will say is that it was really a FUN day…..yes, that’s right, I just said that working out for 14 hours straight was FUN! How can that be possible?????

I will tell you how it is possible. Because there have been days, weeks and even months when I was unable to exercise more than just a gentle walk or slow recumbent bike ride. There were days when my hands were so swollen and sore that I couldn’t pick up my then newborn son or push my then toddler girls in a swing. Three years ago, this summer during my second flare up it took all I had to get dressed in the morning because my hands were so swollen I could hardly pull up my pants. I couldn’t make a fist to fully grab the steering wheel and if I tried to workout and got my heart rate over 140 my joints would be so painful an hour later that I couldn’t move. This is why the Ironman was fun for me. Because the ability to exercise, move and do what I love is a privilege and a gift that has been given to me at this time. Because of those days when I couldn’t do it, I appreciate each day now that I can swim, bike, run, and do any other crazy thing that I decide to try because there may be a day when I cannot do it again.

So outside of the emotional motivation I have to exercise and do triathlons, I also have made a lot of changes in my diet and lifestyle that have allowed me to complete such an extreme event without the use of medications to control my RA. More than 5 years ago I did a complete diet overhaul, getting rid of processed foods and many other foods that some consider “healthy,” but they were causing my immune system to attack my body. Along with this I began Pilates which helped me with relaxation, a mind-body awareness and core stabilization. With these changes I did well for 2 years and then I crashed again when I became over worked and over stressed. After that crash I learned the value of further lifestyle changes including minimizing stress, prioritizing sleep and other self-cares. These changes, though it took time, allowed me to recover to the level that I was able to complete the Ironman in a safe and healthy manner.

I am not telling you all this because I think everyone should do an Ironman. Nor will I tell you that I have no pain. I occasionally have a joint that flares up here and there but nothing that requires traditional medication. I tell you my story to inspire you. If you have an autoimmune disease, chronic pain or a chronic disease of any sort, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes etc, I want you to know that THERE IS HOPE. There are changes that YOU can make to take YOUR life back and get back to doing what ever it is that YOU love, whether that be gardening, playing with your kids, traveling, performing a sport, etc. I would love to help you on this path. Contact me today so we can get you started on a plan to help you not just survive this life but to THRIVE in this life!