Training Summary - Week Ending 2/23

Again, suffered thru spin classes. Had an OK training week. Did only 3 sessions. Sunday's was again a killa. Can't wait to get it back and get on the ROAD!

Training Summary - Week Ending 2/16

Had an OK training week. Did only 3 sessions -- all Spin classes -- due to demands from work. Sunday's was again a killa. Did another one on Wednesday and then again on Friday at 6:30 at New York Sports Club. I wanted to go to a Team in Training group ride on Saturday AM, but my bike is in the shop. Can't wait to get it back and get on the ROAD!

Training Summary - Week ending 2/9

This week, I had 4 workouts. On Sunday, I did a killa spin class with the best spin instructor I ever met -- A.C. -- in the Park Slope New York Sports Club. On Tuesday, I did another workout at NYSC. On Friday, I did another spin class at NYSC, and on Saturday, I did a spin class at New York Health and Raquet Club. This is nothing compared to what's coming.

One of the bravest people I've ever seen...

Tonight, I went to the Kick-Off meeting at Team In Training. Picture hundreds of people who will be running marathons, doing triathalons, and riding Centuries -- training for many months -- sweating and feeling pain and working really hard -- for a cause -- to raise money to fight cancer. Fantastic! I felt proud to be one of them. Now, picture this: A young woman stands up in front of the entire group and tells her personal story of how she was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma and how she underwent months of chemotherapy. Then, after it went into remission and she got better -- it came back a year later! She had to have stem cell transplants. She said she was in a bubble like the kid in Seinfeld for months and she said that it was painful. When someone that goes through something like that tells you it was painful -- you just know it was. She talked about how she was scared and how her parents and her friends and family were afffected. You know, she and people like her are amazing. I'm just a guy who's afraid of losing someone I love. It made me appreciate how lucky I am -- and made me feel like there's hope for my Dad. She talked about the fact that she had a 50/50 chance of surviving. She said that she's happy that she's here now -- but that she thinks of the others who were not so lucky.

Un-Official start of training today!

Today was my "un-official" start of training. Officially, it begins this coming Thursday at a TNT spin class, but I decided to get a head-start. I did a really difficult spin class at New York Sports Club in Park Slope. It was not easy!

Last night, my wife Tatiana and I went out with our friends -- Nikka and Lou. Nikka lives in London and is here for a few days visiting. Lou is a friend of mine for over 10 years but we kind of fell out of touch. Nikka is Tatiana's friend who coincidentally happens to be a friend of Lou's. We hooked up last night to party with Nikka. We partied pretty hard and this morning, our heads kind-of hurt. I told Tatiana that I was going to do a spin class this morning so that I could start my heavy training -- and she told me that one was taking place inside her head. She went back to sleep.

I shocked her -- I went -- and I rocked that class. I sweated out all the toxins and felt great! I felt really good that I started and that I kept my commitment.

My dad is fighting this thing

I always remember my Dad as being this huge, strong guy. I could probably count the number of days I can remember him being sick on one hand! Anyhow, three years ago he was diagnosed with cancer. He was 66. Up until that time, he looked so much younger! A pillar of strength. When they opened him up to remove the tumor, we hoped that would be the end of it. The surgeon was sure he got it all. Afterward, he kept going back every 6 months for Cat-Scans. There was nothing. Until this past June. It was back. In August, he flew up to Sloan Kettering from Lake Worth, FL. The doctor opened him up to remove the newly developed tumor. He said that he couldn't do anything. He said that is was too close to his aorta. He sent him home. We were scared and worried. It so weird that when something like this happens, the Doctors all have different opinions! You'd think that they know what to do! They don't! He started a drug trial because there is no known cure for this type of cancer. He was on the trial until this past December. The doctors said that it wasn't working for him. Yesterday, I got word that the tumor is growing rapidly again. He's got to go on chemo. He asks my Mom if she thinks he's going to make it. She says, "Absolutely!".