8.  Transforms your mind.   Nothing cleans out the “cobwebs” as running does.  Cleaning that junk out of the trunk, so to speak, of the mind comes fluidly with every step, with every breath taken, on the running trail.  Shakespeare said it best, “Bid me run and I will strive with things impossible.”  So true.  I have run for over a decade and I can remember many runs were my main outlet for stress – in fact studies prove that the number one cure for stress is exercise.  Stress starts in the mind, as does nearly everything.  Running also boosts the confidence and self-esteem (see also reason #10 – a higher mindset and confidence level boosts the pocket book as well!).  Higher confidence and self-esteem within one’s self bodes well in all areas of life, not just financial.  Relationships are healthier, work is more productive and focused, time is managed more effectively and overall peace from within your entire body all just tips of the iceberg benefits of how running can transform your mind.

This is a weekly continuation of a 10-week series of the top 10 running transformation tips.

9.  Running transforms your body. After coaching thousands of runners/walkers, I have seen literally thousands of pounds shed off of the bodies of people who found running to be their number one source of cardiovascular activity.   Not only does it help in moving your body and causing sweat to flow and your heart to pump, over 80% of runners say that as a result of their regular running routine, they found themselves eating healthier diets (actually eating more healthy foods, period.) and drinking more water than ever before. They would cut out sweets and sugar regularly because they did not like the way they felt or performed in their workouts/runs. Not only that, another benefit was that they slept better and often even more hours per night due to the heightened activity and desire to get their rest.

Stay tuned to next week for Tip #8!

Have a transformational week!

Yours in Transformational Success,

Lois Tiedemann

949-940-0399

This week I am launching a 10-week series of how running can transform your life.   This series was inspired by my running club group and one of my favorite running coaches of all time, Bill Bowerman (of Nike fame and University of Oregon track coach in the 70s)
“Running, one might say, is an absurd past-time to be exhausting one’s self, however, if you can find meaning in the kind of running it takes to be on this team, perhaps you can find meaning in that other absurd past-time, called life.”
-Bill Bowerman

In honor of the high gas prices lately, I have realized that my love of riding a bike is now becoming a newfound love for many!  Be warned:  this article may give you some crazy ideas on how to save gas money!  AND much, much more!

With gas prices as they are today, and my own choosing of using my bike to run errands and get to places hither and yon, I was reminded of my own previous biking journey that started nearly a decade ago. - before high gas prices, yet for a very external and unexpected reason.

You see, I first rode bike regularly for commutes and getting places versus for exercise.  No joke.  I could commonly be heard saying, in my snottiest “runner” voice, “I’m a runner, NOT a biker!”  I seriously had a purist non-biker’s attitude. 

Cycling was for people like Lance Armstrong (who said it is not about the bike and, boy was he an inspiration for cycling) or for those hard core “roadies” who I had to dodge on my running routes from to time.  Whether it be running or mountain, I saw many a biker in my day.

Then, I became one of “them”.

It all started out so innocently…..then, like most obsessions, I was hooked.

Back in early 2000, when I was in my hey day as a competitive runner/racer, my car got mysteriously side swiped at my work’s parking lot one dark and wintry night in February.  No one ever came forward and shared who-dun-it, so the mystery still remains as to the “who”.  At the time, I was not too happy about the hit-and-run “accident”.  Now, I wish I could shake that person’s hand and thank them for changing my life.

You see, I didn’t get to drive my car for a week during that ever so cold winter in Minnesota.  While my car was being fixed and take care of, it was my trusty (and soon rusty) bike that got me to and from home, work and my workouts at the gym in the wind, the sleet, the snow, the freezing cold. 

In the middle of the day, I would don my scarf, mittens and layers of clothes and trekked the four miles one-way to my associate producer position for a local TV/Cable Satellite station.  I would then don those same clothes and head home in the dark of night after my evening shift.

What took place next, was transformational. 

From that point on, I never drove my car to work again.  In fact, I rarely used my car.  The only reason I did was to serve my real estate clients at the time.  I sold real estate part time and even then, rode my bike to the office many times to combine a workout and office work (this was pre-laptop wireless Internet, work from home days for Lois).  I was easily logging 50 miles per week and then some.

Before I knew it, I was training for century rides (a.k.a. 100-mile bikerides).  Then from there it was triathlons.  Then from there I was able to buy my first home (having saved all that gas money and mileage).  The day before I closed on my house, my loan-free car died a mysteriously painless and short death in my parking lot of my apartment building.  I was able to borrow a car to drive to my closing AND call the auto broker on the way (pre-hands free cell phone days) to order my brand new car (yes, with a loan) to be delivered post-house closing (would not have been able to buy house and car at same time).

From there, as they say, the rest is history.  I got to become a transformed triathlete.  I got to create lifelong relationships that remain to this day.  I got to coach triathletes and become and Ironman.
Yes, I experienced a few run-ins with cars, people and dogs along those many-a-traveled biking miles.  And yes, there were some rides that were more tiring than others.  However, I would not change a thing for the world.

My encouragement to you is to consider your own biking career during this time.  Exercise is the best stress reliever out there.  And, if you are like me, you just may be able to save money and create a transformational, success-filled life out of the humble beginnings of  habit that seemed so harmless at the beginning. 

Here’s to you hitting the road.  If you want any FREE advice, let me know.  I am full of that where cycling is concerned.

Enjoy the journey, you never know where that bike may take you.

I have heard it said that the Mexicans say that the Pacific Ocean has no memory.

Today of all days, I was counting on that one being true.

As I toed the start line of the Pacific before my first triathlon race in over a year, I recalled the last time I crossed the ocean that was fabled to have no memory.  
Instantly, memories surfaced to my conscious mind from somewhere deep within my subconscious of the last triathlon I did in another country in the Pacific, ironically also on an island not too far away from this Aloha state. 

I smiled to myself as I awaited the pre-start race Hawaiian blessing, to be given by a local Reverand Alalani Hill.  The last time I competed in a triathlon was March 3rd, 2007.  That race ended in an emergency room visit and marked the beginning of nearly a year’s worth of health transformation and renewal.  After that race, the emergency room and experiencing what it took to overcome all the stress and internal changes my body would grow through….there were moments where I didn’t know if I would even want to compete again, let alone be at full strength to compete.  I didn’t race again after that experience.

Yet, on Sunday, June 8th, I was back in fine form and ready to challenge my body to a race.  Don’t get me wrong, I was definitely feeling a bit anxious at the thought of competing again after my transformation and time away from the sport that had defined me over the past decade of my life.  I had even written a book about it.  How could I not compete in a triathlon again? 

Yet, if the Pacific Ocean didn’t remember my last finish and ER exit, who was I to live in the past?

This race was different.  This race was dedicated to the memory of my friend, Mikey, who had died from leukemia just over ten years ago.  He inspired me to compete the first time I ever raced in a road race as a 20-year-old.  His mom, Jan, had even made the trip from Iowa to support me and cheer me on.  She had not even flown or left Iowa since my fist marathon for leukemia back in 2000.  This was big, not just for me, but for her too.  She has struggled with alcoholism and depression since Mike’s passing and her own transformation was ongoing since his death.  Her own courage at being there alongside me on this trip was enough to bring me to tears as I listened to the Reverand share her words of love and inspiration/encouragement in her blessing.

I knew Mikey would be with me in Spirit as I made my comeback as a triathlete - fit not only in body, but also in mind and in Spirit.  I was beginning to feel like “Rocky Balboa” after he made his comeback to fight the Russian giant, Drago, in Rocky IV after Apollo Creed died.   I wasn’t here to prove myself so much as a triathlete, as I was competing and fundraising one more (and possibly last*) time for a cause that meant a lot to me in my life’s journey.  (*AUTHOR’S NOTE:  Even Rocky didn’t stop after Rocky IV…..so time will tell if my fundraising days are over, eh?)

The race was centered around the Maui Prince Resort, in Makena, Maui.

The course consisted of a 1.5k single loop ocean swim, a two loop 40k  bike ride and a two loop 10k road run.

Promptly at 7 a.m. local Reverand Alalani Hill began her blessing.  Wow.  What a difference a Hawaiian blessing could make on one’s race prep and mindset.  I walked on the white beach with the thought of just racing for fun and focusing on the reason for being there.  Reverand Hill inspired me to experience more than that.

She reminded us of all the triathletes that had gone before us and how the ocean, the lava rocks, the wind, the trees and the environment was there for them, it would be there for us that day, and it would be there for many generations after.  She inspired us to respect Mother Nature and see the ocean as Her blood and to see the earth and lava as part of the Earth that was set there for us now and how we were running in the footsteps of many others that had gone on that same trail - the King’s Trail. 

She helped us focus on each moment of each swim stroke, of each breath, of each bike pedal, of each step on the lava rock ground that stretched beneath our feet….to embrace every moment, every ocean view, to honor and respect our teammates, our fellow triathletes -
and not focus on what was to come. 

This is somewhat foreign to a competitive athlete such as myself…always analyzing the next move, the next transition, the next discipline to plough through to get to that finish line.  It is born within me to count every second, because, as a competitor, every second counts in the end.  It means the difference between finishing first or finishing second or third or last.  Not thinking ahead meant not to analyze the “what if’s” of racing.  Anything was possible on this course.  One could have a flat tire, or five (as one of my teammates did).  The Hawaiian heat and humidity was not going to escape us that morning and leave for important hydration and nutrition/fuel needs along the way.  There were cut off times to beat and hills to climb.  Bathroom stops and unforeseen road rash that one could experience from falls.  Lots for the mind to take in.

Reverand Hill closed her blessing in reminding us about the Aloha Spirit, the Aloha Way of Life, which I had never been educated on.  When she told me that it meant, “The joyful sharing of life energy in the present” or simply “Joyfully sharing life” in mind, body and Spirit, I got goosebumps.  Indirectly, that was exactly the lesson I had learned in the past few years in building my new business, moving to California, in training for this triathlon and overcoming my health/stress/mental obstacles along the way. 
It is now part of what I teach people in my classes, what I coach my clients to experience every day….I just didn’t know it could be called “Aloha”. 

As the Reverand finished and we were told to take our places in our different waves (swimmers who would start at separate times according to our ages and genders), I felt a renewed sense of hope and whole new outlook.  I was reminded to be in the moment and enjoy the simple joy of being in the present and having fun with my fellow triathletes.  We weren’t competing against one another.  We were simply fellow travelers in this space and time, headed toward the same finish, most of us having raised money for the same cause (over half the racers were with Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team In Training program).

I ended up having the most perfect race ever.  The swim was exhilarating and I finished the .9 mile distance in 35 minutes (not too shabby considering swimming was my least trained component and I experienced an anxiety attack in my last triathlon).  I did exactly what Hill had told us to do and took in every breath of the swim with ease and honored the water as more than just water, but the blood and Spirit of Mother Nature.  It was refreshing to experience the warm water temperatures and go without a wetsuit.

On the bike I felt strong the entire time and was able to feel the energy continue to increase with every pedal stroke - even up “Heartbreak Hill” - the only major hill climb we had the opportunity to go up twice due to the two loops.  Fortunately, living on the coast of California, there is no lack for training up hills just like this one and I had little to no problem mentally or physically to crest the hill with gas left in the tank both times.  I crossed into that second transtion into the run after completing the 24.8 mile bike leg in 1 hour and 29 minutes (a 16.7 mph average on a rolling hills course).

I often say the run is where the race beings for me.  I usually get passed on the swim and then make up a lot of time on the bike, but the run is where my own passing of others begins.  Today, however, in the Spirit of Aloha, I didn’t even think about that.  I listened to my body and walked when the heat and growing humidity was taking its toll.  Hydration was key and the rolling hills were consistent enough that walking at times was greatly welcomed.  I finished the run leg in 57 minutes (merely a 9:14 per mile pace).

As I finished and collapsed on the grass next to Jan, I smiled with sheer joy and elation flooded through my body.  “Run for Mikey” was the sign Jan had created the night before at our pre-race Leukemia pasta team dinner.  She had been out there just as early as we athletes had been to support and encourage the athletes.  I did race for Mikey, Jan and all the others impacted by the disease.  Most of all, for the first time, I truly can say I raced “Aloha” style and will never forget this experience.

And as an added bonus, I found out that my 3 hour and 7 minute, 32 second finish time, was good enough to be honored as the first place finisher of 42 women in my age division of 30-34. 

The moral of the story?  I think I have officially adopted the Aloha lifestyle as my way of training and living life!  I didn’t expect to win first place in my race.  I just went out and stayed with the inspiration Reverand Hill shared - to experience the moment in my mind, in my body and in my Spirit.  Do my best and trust God with the rest.  Don’t live in the past or in the future.  The bonuses from there are the fruit of aloha.  That’s all I could ever ask for.  That’s the best I could wish for you, my friends, my family and everyone in our World. 

Aloha!

As shared to my runners this week before their 5K race and my very own triathlon race I will be partaking in this weekend.  This formula applies to wealth because it is a gentle reminder for you to remember to remember it is not what lies ahead or behind that makes you rich/wealthy.  It is what lies within us all that builds our bank accounts and our riches above and beyond the bank - the riches of our hearts.

One of my favorite things to think about, especially on race week, is the magical formula I know that it takes for me to finish that race and create success for myself - not just in that race, but also in all areas of life.  This is a great metaphor for any challenge you be facing.

No matter what the distance, no matter what type of race, or life’s challenges, it is all the same.

It takes three things to experience victory.

Mind + Body + Spirit

You start the race with your mind full of possibilities, positive energy, excitement and certain expectations of what the finish will look like.

Once you start experiencing the race and you are in the flow, then your body takes over.  You trained well for the race (or maybe not as well as you would have liked) and you have begun the journey on the course.  You started with your mind and your body is now in the flow.  The strength flowing through you propels you onward.  The endorphins have kicked in and are aiding the mind in pursuing that ultimate finish.

Then, the turning point comes when both your mind and your body feel the first, second or third moments of pain.  You maybe hit the proverbial wall and you don’t know if you can keep going.  In fact, you may stop to walk and actually say to yourself either out loud or in your head, “What the heck was I thinking?”

Yet, in your heart, you know there is no turning back.  There is no quitting.  That is because the third, and final, part of your Being gets to kick in and take over.  That is your Spirit!  Your heart overrides your mind and your body’s pain.  You get to dig deep and remind yourself why you are out there in the first place.  Nothing is going to stop that, as long as you fuel that Spirit and believe in yourself.  Everyone/everything around you disappears in that moment.  This is the true runner’s high.  You may even pick up the pace at this point - possibly not even consciously, but on auto-pilot.  The end is near, pulling you forward.

Then you cross that finish line.  You have run the race, fought the fight, kept the faith.  There is nothing better than that feeling.

Until, of course, you finish the next one.  However, cherish these present finish-line moments.  Celebrate with your team.  Relish the victory of competing against your own demons and coming out on the other side the winner of your own race in life. 

I journeyed back to the farmlands of Iowa this week to see my oldest neice, Cassie Jo, graduate from high school.  In the midst of my visiting with family and friends, I always find time to fit in a run around the farm section land that I grew up with.  This is where my grass roots of running (literally) began and where my heart calls me home a few random times throughout the year.  It always feeds my soul to smell the smells of Iowa as I run through the country dirt roads, with the small acreages scattered throughout the 640 square miles of farm dirt that make up the living of the hard working farmers who toil the land year round.

Planting season is under way, a little behind times with all the rain.  I know this because as I plod my way down the dirt road, battling the 15 mile per hour winds toward my father’s farm homestead, I am greeted by the tractors with their planting equipment attached at the rear.  They simply stare at this lonely long distance runner, seemingly a stranger in these here parts, not knowing whether or not I am lost or simply crazy.  I smile as they pass, knowing that I am neither (although the latter diagnosis has not been confirmed either way as I type this).  I am simply a runner, out for a mid-day four-and-a-half miler cruise. 

I reminisce about every family that I knew lived in those farmhouses when I was a child. As I passed by, I wondered if it was the same family or not.  I awaited the random dog to come out and chase me, nipping at my heels as they always used to.  I did not run into any “Fidos” of any shape or size.  They must have been in their doghouses staying safe and guarded from the fierce winds that were whipping in and around the open landscape this blustery, sunny Spring day.

I saw my Aunt Gayla, my dad’s sister-in-law, bent over her garden, toiling her own soil as I ran by.  I snuck up behind her to say hello.  She fiegned a heart attack as I nearly scared her to death with my impromptu visit.  I smiled, the sweat trickling down my arms as I had stopped fighting the wind as I stood there, protected by their appropriately placed northwest property bordered by trees lining the road.   We caught up for just a few moments, as I eyed my watch, knowing I had a schedule to keep and didn’t want my lunch to be cold or my dad wondering what was keeping my arrival.

I finished the run feeling great.  Just over four miles and I felt as though I had traveled thousands as I went down memory lane.  Just in time for dinner (or lunch as we city folk call it) with my dad, Norman Tiedemann.  I felt like that farm kid again, if just for a moment, and enjoyed the mashed potatoes, peas and leftover meatloaf.  I love Iowa.  I love the northwest winds.  I love the farmers that toil the land.

It’s always good to go home.

I arrived back to my old stomping grounds - the place where I truly became a marathoner and fell in love with running by the water.

Minneapolis is known as the City of Lakes, located in the heart of Minnesota, the land of 10,000 lakes.  I flew in on late Wednesday night and true to form, I landed myself a nice run with the Team In Training Leukemia Society group around Lakes Calhoun and Harriet. 

I felt the sense of nostalgia wash over me as I ran with my friend Karl, and my nearly 40 other newfound friends, all who came together to raise funds for a cause greater than themselves. 

We fell into place easily as we paced ourselves at the start of the seven mile run, the cool spring air breeze gently enfolding us along with the newly hatched gnats flying through the air.  I relished in the official start of Spring in this Midwestern city that had only just said goodbye to the snow a mere three weeks earlier.  The buds on the trees were just officially blooming and the lakes were cold after just thawing at the same time the snow disappeared.

The coolness and fresh air were much appreciated and the smells of lilacs and what I call “Minneapolis lake smells” consumed my mind and brought me back in time.  It has been nearly six years since I lived here and yet the years flew by in my mind as I recounted the thousands of miles I logged with my training partners that I competed alongside, coached through their own experiences and the many strangers I greeted on all those runs.

Karl and I are both training for the Maui Triathlon, which takes place on June 8th.  Both of us are nearing our fundraising goals and the final taper before the big day.

Today we didn’t think much about either the fundraising or the triathlon.  We were living in the moment and enjoying some of the memories of our past, catching up on old times and where our lives have brought us since our running club days of yore.

That is one of the reasons I run.  It is in the running and the creation of memories and relationships along the miles logged that make running, and ultimately, life, all the more worth living and experiencing. 

I don’t miss the ocean saltiness smells just yet…..I get to consciously enjoy some different sights, smells and sounds this week while on vacation.  And for me, that is amazingly great for mind, body and Soul.

The sunshine came out today and I am always amazed at even in California, the land of paradise and amazing weather year round, the sun can inspire more people to come out and train.

I hit the outdoor swimming pool at Ole Hanson to catch some sun and train in the great outdoors, getting in just roughly 1000 meters with a ladder workout of 200, 500, 100, 200 meters respectively.

Even getting there right when the doors opened for lap swimming, the lanes were full and I knew I would have the pleasure of swimming with a lane partner or two. 

I landed next to my 81-year-old friend Ernie.  He was in the lane next to me and I smiled as I asked, “So how far you going today Ernie?”

“Oh, I don’t know….these days I just listen to my body.  If it says “whoa”, I go “whoa’”

I laughed out loud.  What a great coaching tip for myself.  If my body says, ‘Whoa’, I think I can go whoa too.

Immediately upon entering the water and bracing myself for that first chilled effect one always gets when first entering the pool water, I met my own lane partner.

“What’s your name?”  I asked

“Speed.”  He stated simply.

I smiled in response.  My new friend, “Speed” was easily in his 60s and I would find out that he was just in his first four months of swimming as a new sport.  Speed was his nickname from days gone by on the basketball court.  He had picked up swimming as something inspired to keep him going til he reaches Ernie’s age and beyond.

I smiled as I swam, thinking, I am between”Whoa” Ernie and “Speed”.  Both whom are a great inspiration for me to keep going - knowing that I can listen to my body and swimming does a body good!