I also was considering training as a triathlete.  I decided that since I have a broken foot it would not be a good idea, even after I get the foot fixed.  Since it has been broken for almost 14 years, I am not at all sanguine that it will come back 100%.  Couple that with my two bad knees and...I just don't think running is in my future. 

However, I remember that the websites I looked at said running should come LAST in the training.  It said something about the damage to knees being caused primarily by runners starting training too quickly, especially when they had weight issues. 

I don't remember which sites I looked at, but one had a training guide.  I would google it.  And I would suggest doing the bicycling first.  Less stress on the joints than running, and less of a time committment than swimming.

Tex, you beat me to the punch.  I was about to say that cycling is not a reality in the winters here.  Some crazies do it but I am not getting out there and biking when it is minus 30 degrees celcius and the road are covered in snow!!!  That was why I said about starting cycling in the spring. 

I hear what you are saying about the knees.  I appreciate your input and certainly see your point.  My brother has been running for years, marathons and stuff, and he had to have knee surgery last year.  He still can't run.

I used to run daily until I got sick.  It got me really fit and, while getting out was tough at times, I always felt better after.  Of course, I am no where near fit now.     I have a proper running schedule for starting out again.  You know, start with 2 minute run, 2 minute walk etc, that last 10 weeks until you reach running 5k in 30 minutes or so, then another 10 weeks to the 10k point.

My GP told me to get back to running...despite the weight gain.  I was diagnosed with arthritis recently and she told me to get out there and work on the weight to help that.  She just said not to use the joints when the arthritis was flaring up.  Still, I am ruminating on what you are saying.  Maybe I should walk until Oct when I can sign up at the work gym again ($80 for a one year membership!!!!  you CAN'T beat that) and then I can start on the eliptical (sp?) which wont bother the joints.  Perhaps then in January I can start running...even if it must be on the treadmill for the most part with the weather such as it is here.  I have a treadmill here and of course work has them too.  I just hate running on my treadmill at home...I get soooo bored.  At least at the gym I can watch other people doing things!!  They have bikes at the gym too.  I wonder how much it would cost me to get a bike in the house to work on.  I think I could probably hear the TV over that...but cannot with the treadmill. 

JD

Swimming is the least stressful for joints since there is no weight bearing while you swim.  Biking comes next since the joint stress is pressure, not weight.

I don't have a stationary bike but I do put my recumbent bike up on a trainer for the winter.  (No, I am not crazy enough to bike on snow and ice!).  If you have a bike that you are comfortable riding, you can purchase a trainer for it.  They connect to the back wheel and provide resistence while you spin away.  This is the least expensive option (although some trainers can be expensive, you can get them for less than $100).  Biking on a stationary or trainer is just as boring as the treadmill.  I recommend reading a book or watching a video/TV to keep you going.  Expensive stationary bikes can have computer programs built into them just like the treadmills, that will change the resistence to simulate going up hill, etc.  On a trainer, you can do the same thing by changing the gears on your bike.

If you don't already own a bike, I'd suggest you start looking into getting one.  They are a great form of exercise and transportation.

BB, I looked into trainers today.  They seem to start at about $150 here.  A friend of mine who likes biking as much as you is advising me so I don't buy one that is too cheap or too expensive for my needs.  He is really helpful with things like that.  Last year he revamped my 24 year old bike that I thought was useless for about $100 - everything from new tires, new gears, new handle bar tape, new brakes to a bell.  It was a lot cheaper than a $500 bike!!  Anyway, he is looking at a used one that he thinks would be good for me.  I wouldn't know what to look at so he is doing that and letting me know if I should look into it.  I will find out tomorrow...if it is even still available.  Meantime I am going to pull my bike down, pump up the tires and take her for a 5-10 k ride on Sat and Sun weather permitting.  Hell, maybe I will even go Friday depending on how my run goes and how long I am at the Harry Potter movie.  I think it is supposed to rain though.

Hair...Good God it is unhappy today.  I dunno what is up.  I think it hates Pantene.  I am going back to my AG once I get to a hair dresser.  That might be Friday too!!!  Actually it might be Weds when I go to the hospital.  There is a hairdresser there.  I washed yesterday with the icky tar shampoo using conditioner to protect the length.  It seemed ok.  Then today I went for a short run at lunch (ok, I know what I wrote yesterday...but I thought I would just give it a try for a week or so) and then I rinsed, conditioned and rinsed again.  It just seems...ugh.  I can't describe it.  I hope to take a short run again tomorrow but I think tonight I will set up an ACV rinse to take with me.  I don't want to poo it.  So I will try an ACV and condition.  I don't want to oil tonight because I am not sure what is wrong with it...on the flip side, it may be up in a 'bun' tomorrow so if it is bad it will work out ok... I guess.  HA, I just figured the problem with Pantene (or at least the one I have).  It has 3 cones in the first 10 ingredients!!  AG has one cone (about 20th on the list) in the whole thing.  Yup, AG it is for this girl.

The new meds for my body psoriasis seem to be working well.  It itches like crazy normally and I tend to scratch in my sleep so my doc told me to put a tensor on to protect myself.  That did not work.  The tensor made it itch so badly I could not sleep for trying not to rip the thing off and scratch it to bleeding (and I have done that before).  Now, as we all know, when sores are healing they itch...so if I thought it itched before I started using a good med on it....WOW!!  Hopefully in a week that will be done.

As for the nail psoriais...oh how I miss my beautiful nails...I will post pics of what they look like (although not mine since my hubby took my camera) in a sec so you can see how gross they are.   I have done some reading and it says to put the scalp medication under the nails (that oily stuff) and then massage the skin stuff on the cuticle and skin just below the nail and then wrap it in saran wrap.  Great...more to add to the bedtime routine.  It may or may not work...but I will try...but let me tell you it sucks.  I have great difficulty setting it up and then put cotton gloves over the hands so it does not come off.  Great.  Last night I just about died with the gloves, the tensors on my legs, arms and hip, the satin wrap on my head....It is too hot for this stuff....especially for a girl who sleeps nude in the summer.  Anyway...it is just for 2 weeks and then it will either work or not.  They tell you not to do it with the saran wrap for more than 2 weeks. 

I miss my beautiful nails that I had a year ago...and being fit and 40 lbs lighter like a year ago...and having skin that people remarked was nice...instead of the mess it is now...and having a husband to come home to...and planning a pregnancy. I feel like I was in a tornado and landed in Oz...but as the wicked witch instead of Dorothy.

I know, whining will do me no good...must work on getting fit, finding happiness with myself and THEN a man (and not before).  Hey, nobody told me I had great hair a year ago and they do now!!!  Patience and some hard work will make it all ok...except perhaps the nails and the baby...but we can't have it all...can we?

JD

Wow!  That's gross.

I don't think you're whining, JD.  In order to move forward and beyond, it is important to be truthful about where you are now.

I hope your nails come back better than ever, sorry you have to endure so much to get there.

One foot infront of the other!!

jd, i'm sorry about your nails and skin giving you so much trouble! hope you are feeling better soon, and these symptoms go away for a while.
i have a stationary bike, one of the lower end ones, proform 70. it changes resistance based on what you program into it. it's pretty good, i use it in the winter while i watch tv. kind of boring, but gets me moving in a season when i'd prefer to be under the covers reading all the time b/c of the cold.
as for the triathlon-don't know if you already settled this one or not-it sounds like a great thing to try for next year, not this one. maybe this year you could keep working at getting into the shape you want to be in, and also let yourself adjust back to the longer work week again.
then next year you could plan time for the biking/swimming side of it too. i think you should go for it, could be very motivating and satisfying to complete, but don't burn yourself out with taking it on too quickly.

I called the pool and am going for a tour on Sat to see how I feel about the Thurs night course.  It finishes at 7:45 so I would be back here by 9 with almost dry hair and I would only have Friday to get through.  Thinking on.

Did not wash hair after all.  Used my antique brush I mentioned many posts ago (and hae been trying not to use since I am not sure how to clean it) and hair looks ok now.  Maybe it just needed a brush instead of a comb???  Ok, so I might regret this decision if I have to get in the shower at 4 tomorrow morning...but I have done EVERTHING I can go make my morning really easy if I have to wash it.  Coffee pot set to brew at 3:50, cat tuna set in cat dishes in fridge, dog bowls FULL (they only eat what they need these days as opposed to when they were young and were vacuums), lunch is made and in the fridge, smoothie for breakfast is ready, clothes are laid out for the morning, makeup is on the counter ready to use, animal water bowls are filled to the max, car is reversed into garage, keys and work pass are by the front door, alarm is set 15 minutes early, leaving the curtains open to let in the cooler night air, left a bunch of stuff on the kitchen counter for my folks to take when they come to let the dogs out tomorrow (will be out about 16 hours tomorrow so doggie day care needed)...I think that is it.  Wish me luck...day 3 in a row at work for the first time in 9 months, might have to wash hair and have 2 hours at the hospital on top of work tomorrow.  I'm ready though!!  Going to bed early...night all.

JD