Five years ago, Becky Lavelle was racing full-time as a Pro Triathlete, traveling the world to compete and earn a living. Today, she's a mom in the Zone.
Just over five years ago my life was quite different from what it is today. I was racing full-time as a Pro Triathlete, traveling all over the world to compete and earn a living. My biggest concerns were when I could get a massage, what I could eat next and making sure I got at least 10 hours of sleep at night. Days were filled with training, eating, napping, meeting a friend for coffee, shopping, and planning travel/logistics for my upcoming races. I was able to plan nutritious meals and focus my eating on fueling and refueling my body in the best way possible. A big component of that was my Zone nutrition plan. I never missed a day taking my OmegaRx, MaquiRx, and Micronutrient Support!
I enjoyed training and racing full-time very much and knew nothing different. I knew how lucky I was to be so fit and to be able to do something I love to do for so many years. I also knew it wasn’t a long-term career. It was a small window of time where I would be able to maximize my fitness and my ability to make a living by racing.
My husband and I also wanted to start a family when we were both in our mid-30s. I hoped that I would be able to race a few more years after our first child, but I was prepared to not make a return if I didn’t feel that I could get back to a competitive-elite level. After having a miscarriage in February of 2009, I decided to get back into shape and race the rest of that year. I even won a few races! At the end of the season I was able to get pregnant, and we were blessed with a baby girl, Caitlin Jenny, born on June 15, 2010.
It was quite an adjustment as I switched gears from training and racing to changing diapers, feeding Caitlin and not sleeping nearly as much as I used to. I wouldn’t have changed it for the world though. She is the light of my life, she has helped put everything into perspective and she has given me a real purpose.
Taking care of Caitlin was my number-one priority, but I knew I still had some competitive drive left in me. I was 35 at the time, so I figured I still had a few more ‘racing’ years in me. I slowly began to get myself back into shape. My workouts became much more focused, and I tended to rely more on intensity than volume since my time was limited. I was still a stay-at-home mom, fitting in my training before Caitlin woke up in the morning and during her nap(s). I had a full race schedule that year with quite a bit of travel, and I was pleased with what I was able to accomplish given my new life as a mom and a Pro Triathlete.
Going into my second racing season after having Caitlin, I knew it may be my last as we wanted to complete our family and try to have another baby. I raced 36 times from 2011-2012, and at the last race I did (Rev3 Florida Half Ironman, Oct 2012), I raced my heart out knowing that it could be the last professional race of my career. I ended on a high note and won that race. I will never forget it!
Since then I’ve had another child, Evan Gibbs, who turns 2 in February. My life now is even more about taking care of my kids and instilling good healthy eating habits as well as showing them what a healthy lifestyle is all about. My workouts now are usually running with Evan in the jogger or going for a bike ride around the neighborhood with Caitlin. She has actually already competed in 3-kids tris, and she inspired me to sign up for a local all-women’s sprint tri. It felt great to get back out there, to push myself, to cross the line holding hands with Caitlin and show her what my ‘job’ used to be.
I believe that taking Zone supplements has helped keep me healthy and at the top of my game, whether in training/racing, during and after my pregnancies or taking care of my kiddos. Being active, healthy and fit is a lifestyle I don’t think I can ever give up… and I hope my kids will always feel the same.
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