Fitness Friday: Weeks 21- 26

It has been awhile since I have given a fitness update! It has been a beautiful summer here in Anchorage with record setting warm weather and temperatures. It doesn't seem right at all to go to the gym during this beautiful weather so I have spent most of my time hiking, biking, and enjoying this summer weather.

The biggest news is that Tony and I completed our sprint triathlon! It was in Wasilla, Alaska and we swam 400 meters, biked 9 miles, and ran 3 miles. The biking was the hardest piece for me since I trained on a stationary bike. I was so proud to have completed my first triathlon. It was really fun for Tony and I to train and complete the goal together. I finished in about 1 hour and 35 minutes and Tony finished in about 1 hour and 8 minutes. 

Here are some pictures from the triathlon and beautiful weather here in Anchorage:

"Bodymarked" and ready to go! (That is what they said we had to do when we checked in- get "bodymarked") Haha

Love the philosophy that you don't have to win, just try! Because I am not the most competitive person, but I do love completing goals.

The triathlon pool was the Wasilla High School pool.

I was most worried about swimming, but it ended up being the most enjoyable part of the race for me!

The "transition" zone. This is where you transition from swim to bike, then bike to run.

Me at the finish line!! Woo Hoo!!

Tony and I with our medals and completion shirts that we will wear with pride!

Tony and I both really enjoyed the triathlon and really hope to train more and try more triathlons. I would like to try one that is more challenging- such as in a lake and cross country running. We will see! But I am glad to have completed my first one.

The weather has been BEAUTIFUL lately. This is a picture from Eklutna Lake, Alaska where we went when my friend Christa visited!

Today, it was rainy but I went on a hike with some future Grace Christian School staffers and teachers. We went on a trail called Powerline Pass and it felt wonderful to get a good long hike in to stretch the legs!

As much as I wish my fitness was on par right now though, I have not been working out 4 days a week as I committed to in my New Year's Resolutions. My goal is to really change that and try to get out and enjoy this weather or focus on my swimming at the gym.

Hope you are meeting your fitness goals! I am finding it is so much easier when I am doing something with people- like hiking this morning if I know other people will be there. 

Happy Summer! :)

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Kodiak Island, Alaska

One of my favorite things about being married to Tony is that he loves to surprise me and treat me to things that mean a lot to me. For example, over Memorial Day weekend, Tony took me to Kodiak Island, Alaska which is about a 1 hour flight from Anchorage.

The trip was meant to be a time of rest, refreshment, and to just kind of focus on our marriage and each other for a little while. Tony was down in Kodiak for work during the weekend. Tony works for the State of Alaska Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. Tony works in the outreach department so part of his job is to educate communities and people about how to prepare for emergencies. This includes going to schools, fairs, festivals, and even traveling to other towns. Mostly, Tony hands out pamphlets but for this weekend for example, he brought a water pump that shows how to convert dirty water into clean water in an emergency :) That's my man. Teaching about emergencies! (He has also been known to operate the "Quake Shake" which the kids love as it imitates what it would feel like to be in an earthquake). 

I accompanied Tony on his work trip so (bonus!) we got our hotel paid for and we just had to buy my ticket! 

Here are some pictures from our weekend in Kodiak Island, Alaska.

As you can see, Kodiak is an island off of Alaska. It is an adventure!

Just before my trip to Kodiak, got to spend some time with Jessie!! Miss her, she has been away at college and now is back for summer yippee!

SO beautiful in Kodiak. Kodiak is a small fishing village and fishing is really the industry that runs the town, but tourism is up there too. Kodiak is known for having the most Brown Bears (or "Grizzly" Bears) anywhere in Alaska square footage wise. BUT Tony and I didn't see any bears while we were there although we looked near and far!

Of course, there were lots of food booths at the Kodiak Crab Festival!

The lines for the food booths were crazy!

There were also some carnival rides which I opted out of due to enjoying the fried food all weekend and not being sure how the two combined would work out for me.

Ok we ALSO got to see a dead whale that got washed up on shore. Maybe it's because I live in Alaska or maybe I have just changed SO much but I was actually amazed and intrigued by this whale! We found out from going to the aquarium that this was a GREY whale NOT a humpback like we originally thought. If you look closely, you can see that there are barnacles that live on the whale. This is an indication that it is a grey whale because barnacles ONLY live on grey whales! Learn something new every day :)

Look how HUGE it is!! Crazy.

Barnacles up close!

This was an old warehouse turned into a museum.

We went to the Wildlife Preservation Center which was full of interesting factoids. Sadly, this was as close as we got to a brown bear :(

Then we took a trip to the aquarium!

Me with the crab pots of Kodiak! Interestingly enough, we were in Kodiak for the Kodiak Crab Festival but there was no crab except for at the hotel restaurant for like $60.00. Guess that's why we have to wait for the summer season.

There was a "Survival Suit Race" where teams sign up and race against the clock to run, put a cold water survival suit on, and then swim across the water to the orange raft by the boats.

There was also a marathon which turned out super rainy! My mom would have wished I participated. 

Part of our weekend was super rainy :(

We had a great time in Kodiak Island at the crab festival. If you are ever thinking about visiting Alaska, Kodiak is a really beautiful place to go. We went in May but as the summer goes on, it gets more and more beautiful there and is known as the "Emerald Isle". It is a small town so I would say the appeal is seeing the fishing boats, the bears, the wildlife, and just being outdoors- hiking, fishing, camping, and just enjoying nature. And maybe if you are lucky, you'll get to see a dead whale. Just kidding. But really.

Check out: http://www.kodiak.org/ if you wanna visit for info and tips.

Hope you are having an amazing summer!

Love, Anna

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