Am I a Triathlete ? Yes I'm

now I'm a Triathlete, it sounds ridiculous and it kind of is, but I have finished now my first Super Sprint Triathlon and I think I can call myself a Triathlete, not a good one by any means but hey who can argue.
I want to talk a bit about my Race Day .
It was a really early Start on Sunday we had to bring the Bike really early into the Transition Area ,it was already humming and buzzing when I arrived there , so got my Bike into Transition Area , made sure Helm gloves , Glasses etc were in place and then I had time , loads of time, until my Race started.
More then two Hours actually, but I was not bored at all, It was really interesting to was the Olympic Racers starting their Race and seeing the Swim etc.
So finally it was my Time to start , and when I was heading for the Water I was extremely nervous, so we jumped into the River, jumping into Water is normally a no no for me anyway but I jumped and soon after the Swim started , 600 meters of Swim and the swim had always been my biggest fear,so I started out Slowly and soon realized I could do this . Slow, but I was getting into a Rhythm I actually started to enjoy the Swim.
Most of the other Swimmers were quite a bit in front of me but I had up to 35 minutes to finish this and  I was able to finish it in 22 minutes , not fast and I know with proper Training I can improve this, so next stage was getting into the  transition and onto the Bike. Something interesting happened here, my legs kind of refused to do anything , I felt wobbly and very hungry, I remembered now that I had my Breakfast more than 4 hours earlier and I had not really eaten anything since then. Great planning on my side ,  somehow I managed to get out of the Wetsuit and onto the Bike and I wanted to take it easy , problem was the first 2 km on the Cycle track was a steep uphill ,not easy with being hungry and very tired Legs. I had one of these Energy Gels with but  I didn't want to take it at that stage , I was hoping i could wait a couple of kilometers so that I would not starve in the middle of the Run .
So I did my 16 km Cycle in a bit over 42 minutes, which was a decent time . Last but not least was a 4 km Run , my legs took it a bit easier this time and I just wanted to finish this , so decided to run Slow ( Something I' doing always anyway ), I also finally started to eat my Energy Gel , I still think they are disgusting and I don't like them but that one really helped me to recover . But I defiantly was running out of condition and i just had to do this somehow, what I found amazing only at this Stage I was really getting out of Breath , before that, I was tired but not out of Breath , that is really proof to me that my Body has adapted to exercise quite well .So anyway with walking and Running i managed to reach the finish line , I finished 3rd last in this but again that is something I don't really care about , I want to finish the races I'm starting and if I finish last or nearly Last doesn't matter to me .
I think for somebody with Borderline COPD that's all that should matter .
Will I do it again , yes I will but I will have to train for this, the Triathlon Season is practically over and now I glad that I have the next couple of month to prepare for next Season.
And then next Year I will also have again my lung Function Test, not sure yet what to expect but I  will be happy if I hear "Lung Function is still good" or Lung Function is still OK" .

in between Races 10miler done and Triathlon ahead

I have finished the 10 Mile Race on Saturday , it was a though one and I  would have loved if my Time would have been a bit better ( I wanted to run this in 2 Hours ) I finished the Race in 2:10 Hours , which is for actually not bad if I'm honest.

I did this Race 3 Year Ago an needed back then I needed 15 minutes longer and I finished at place 2666, guess how many finishers that Race had , exactly 2666 . I finished in the last Place.

 In the Meantime I have lost easily 15 -20 Kilo's of Weight and have improved my Health considerably . So overall I'm really happy, I have finished it and my only real Problems during the run have been really bad Leg Cramps , no Breathing or Coughing Problems.

This Time not last Place for me , not far from the Back but not last ;o)

I tend to get the Cough in Cold Weather but it was actually a bit too warm for the Run.

I'm kind of wondering of the Cough is coming back during the Cold Season ,I will wait and see but I think this Time I will not be too surprised and annoyed if the Cough is coming , that is just part of me in that Case.

So next Sunday I will have my first Sprint Triathlon , I'm really nervous about that one but I will try just to enjoy it .

some Words about the Irish Alpha One Foundation

I'm a German who came 11 Years ago to Ireland , I originally had only planned to stay 1-2 Years , yeah right, that was 11 Years ago.I love Ireland it has become my Home.
But because of my Possible future Health Problems I was kind of Concerned with the Irish Health System, yes in Germany I could just walk into a GP without Paying him 50 Euro just to say hello , that's the good side but is the Irish Health System really so bad, I don't think so, I have seen really horrible things in Germany so it's not so bad as everyone thinks it is.
But I don't really want to talk about the Irish Health System , I want to talk about the Irish Alpha 1 Organisation ( which is of course part of the Irish Health System ).
My first Contact with the Alpha One Foundation was back in 2004 ,  honestly I was at a pretty low Point at that time ,at that time I suffered badly from Cold and Bronchitis . I had this Cough for Month and I was in a real denial that I was a Alpha1. Hey I was a MZ and according to everyone one real Risk , however no one could explain me why the Heck I had one Cold after the next .
I confided to a Friend of mine, that I had this Alpha1 Gene and  I was pretty sure that no GP in Ireland had ever heard about it . Back in Germany barely anyone knew what Alpha1 was and that it was discovered in my Mum was probably pure Luck ( She went by Chance to the one Lung Specialist in the whole of Northern Germany who  had knowledge about Alpha 1 ).
My Friend did Research and found the Irish Alpha One Foundation , so after some time I gave in and got my appointment , they checked my Blood Levels and confirmed i was a MZ ( I knew that already because I had been tested in Germany ).
Now the Consultation started I got my Lung Function Test  , they explained me what  I should avoid ( Smoking etc ) , what I should do when I got a cold / Flu and on top of it they did send a information Letter to my local GP and explained him what Alpha1 Antitrypsin Deficiency was.
I have to Say I hate Hospitals, in my Childhood I had to visit my Mother so often in the Hospital that I nearly got sick when I smelled this particular Smell a Hospital seems to have ( the Health issues my Mum had back then where not even Alpha1 related ) .
It was not easy back then  to go up to the Beaumont and follow through with that Appointment but the Atmosphere here is completely different It was kind of a positive Charged Atmosphere ,  I have no real words to describe it but I trusted what the Doctors and Nurses gave me as a advice and  I got my follow up Appointment for the Next Year . So now for over 7 Years I'm visiting the Alpha 1 organisation .
 I get my lungs checked out , the nurses/Doctors know me they know the History etc etc . I'm always try to go the the patient Conference and I think the Work that Team is doing is just absolutely AMAZING.
I Saw on Facebook now that the Irish Alpha One Foundation  ( http://www.alpha1.ie/ ) has it's 10 Year anniversary . I really want o congratulate them for their great Work and Help they are providing , so with that Many Thanks to Alpha1 Ireland and  I will think occasionally about you Guys when I do my 10 Mile run tomorrow !

10mile Starter number arrived today

I think today is a good Day to talk about this Year ( 2011 ) and how it started and where I'm now.
In my previous Blog I mentioned already that I haven't had a Bronchitis or Cold or Flu in over 2 Years , I have lost quite a bit of Weight and I also started regular Exercise, I'm a Alpha1 MZ Type , so according to many Experts I should not get any Symptoms as long as  I don't Smoke, but there are quite a few MZ out there, who have actually severe Symptoms .

So at the beginning of 2011 the only Problem I had, was  cold Weather, which causes a dry Cough  of which I can't get rid of and I was always the slowest Runner in my group. Being slow annoyed me but I said to myself ,I'm more or less just start the Running I can't expect Miracles.

So my annual Lung Function Test came up, my Lung function so far had always been very good but I never really bothered to look to deep into the Lung Function Test.
Everyone who ever had this sheet in his / her Hands knows there are a lot of other nice Numbers on that Paper ( FEV1, FEV1/FVC , PEF25-75%  )
I actually had no clue what these numbers meant and why should I bother , my Lung Function is good, the Year before it had been at 113 Percent , the only Value I remembered ( I guess a lot of People think now "How Stupid can you get" )  .
So the Day of the Lung function test had arrived and because of my Health Progress , the only thing my Brain was willing to accept was something like " Lung Function same as last Year or Lung Function has improved".

I really went to that Test expecting one of those Comments but instead  I got from the Nurse this: "Lung Function is still very good".
 It might sound silly but that comment was a huge Disappointment to me , so I took this Paper up to the Doctor and I actually still expected to hear "perfect" result" but again  I got the same Comment as before: "Lung Function is still very good.

I did not ask what they meant with that and just took this on board (Important NOTE Here : not asking Details is absolutely my Fault, I have huge Respect for the Doctors and Nurses  who take Care of the Alphas in Ireland, I'm really impressed with their Service and the Help they are giving ) .

 At home I finally started to learn what all these fancy Numbers in the Spirometer Test meant .I actually started to understand what COPD is and the difference to Asthma.
Result of my own research is :  "Lung Function is still very good"   but if I look a little bit Further Down I could interpret the Rest of the Numbers as "there could be a potential COPD problem looming". I'm kind of just above the Borderline of mild COPD Symptoms.

It took me a couple of Weeks to recover mentally from this, I also realized I could be on the wrong Track,  so the Alpha1-Runner was born.
I decided to run a 10km Race every month,  which I practically have done so far. In most 10k Races  as mentioned before I'm always the Runner just before the Walkers, I had some Races where Walkers actually have been faster than me. I have had Races where I was the Second Last and I was the Last Person in a Race.
Does it bother me ? Yes it does, I would lie if I would say otherwise , do I give up , no way because I also enjoy what I have archived so far. I actually have increased my Schedule and I'm planning to do a 10 Mile Race in 2 Weeks time , a Sprint Triathlon ( my first ever ) in 3 Weeks Time and a Half marathon in 8 Weeks Time .
I will probably be one of the last persons arriving the finish Line in each of these Races but if I reach the Finish Line than that's the biggest Win I can hope for and that's all I want finish those Races and see how far this Alpha1-Runner can go.

Me, Alpha1 and a little bit more

In my first Blog I made a very ( very ) brief introduction what Alpha1 Antitrypsin Deficiency actually is, I could  talk about Alpha 1 the whole  Day , Symptoms , Problems , Health Issues , at which Stage is the Research etc etc etc .
I'm a so called MZ Type and no one really knows why some MZ Types get the full blown symptoms ( COPD , Liver Disease etc ) and some go through their whole Life without knowing that they have it. One mayor factor is Smoking , there is no question about that Smoking and being a Alpha 1 ( Regardless which Type ) is a extremely bad Idea .  There is a kind of a Big Research worldwide going on what the other Factors are , so I don't know  if I ever will get COPD or Liver Damage .
My Mother had the full blown Symptoms , however I have to say She never stopped Smoking ( Something i thankfully never started )  which was very likely a major Factor for her declining Health
So now about me , my next Birthday will be my 40th birthday and if you would have asked me 6-7 Years Ago, I would have guessed that I will be a very sick Person by the Time I hit 40.
6-8  Years ago, I had constantly Bronchitis , I had one cold after the other , I was nearly constantly on Antibiotics, my Body was never able to recover and even when I did not had a Bronchitis I had a constant cough and Mucus Problems and to top that off I was not Overweight I was OBESE and lastly what I did not realize at that Stage was that I was very Stressed the whole Time !!

So over the Years I changed my life bit by bit and my current Health Status is, I would say nearly perfect . I still have a few too many Kilos on my Body but I haven't had a Cold or Bronchitis in over 2 Years, that alone is amazing .
I also started to to Exercise in every shape and Form , lastly I took up running and now comes the part that still upsets me , even though I'm Training kind of Hard, I can't run fast , in every 10K Race I'm doing I'm the one who is running in the Back , just in front of the Walkers . If other Runners hope to break the 5 min /Km Mark I hope to break the 7:30min/ Km.
 I had races where Walkers have been faster than me .
I have to say that took a huge amount of willpower not to be too disappointed about that, I'm guessing a lot of People who Read that just think what a Wimp and that might be true,  but what I want to say with this is , if you are an Alpha 1 and have no obvious Symptoms you still might be very different to the runner next to you who is same age , same Weight , He /She might get quite a bit faster over the Finish Line

If I look at my annual Lung functions Tests I can clearly see that it is going a bit downhill , I don't know yet where it will stop but I have sworn to myself I will do everything in my Power to keep as healthy as Possible.
I have therefor certain Rules in my life which I rather strictly follow these Days :
Stress , I do NOT allow negative Stress , I have changed Jobs , I actually have changed the country ( More about that in another Post  )  , basically I have changed my whole Life .
These Days I enjoy my Job , I enjoy my Life and if I  have sometimes a Stressful workday it is not negative Stress
I think this was the most important Change in my Life , I really believe that Stress is a mayor Health Factor
Everything else fell afterwards  into place , it took ages to loose Weight to change eating Habits but when my Stress was gone I had time to concentrate on this. it took  over a span of over 5 Years to get where I'm now. I hope that I will be at the end of this Year on  normal Weight but if not then I accept it and will continue to improve my eating habits.
Sport is these Days a major factor in my Life and that is what this blog will be about the Alpha (MZ)  who took up Sport and wants to blog how far I can get . I want to know how far I can improve with my Age and will compare this with my annual Health Check

Welcome to the World of an Alpha-1

Let me start with a short Intro what what Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency  is and what it can cause , here is the official Statement from the  Alpha 1 Organisation :


Alpha-1-Antitrypsin Deficiency (Alpha-1) is a genetic disorder that can cause liver and lung disease in children and adult


Alpha-1 Antitrypsin is an important protein produced by the liver, which is released into the bloodstream and travels to the lungs.  Once inside the lungs it provides protection from the destructive effects of infections and harmful irritants, particularly tobacco smoke


I will go into exact Details over the course of this Blog but here is a short info what does that actually mean . People with Alpha 1 , could go through their life with no Symptoms in their whole life ,they probably don't even know that they have it, the other extreme is, people might need a Liver or Lung transplantation 


So in which category do I fall in ? To be honest I don't know yet , in theory I should be fine , I have only "half" a bad Gene ( I'm a Mz type ) and I should have enough protection in my Body to never ever get real symptoms. That's the theory , unfortunately no one can give me a guarantee on this, because there are plenty of people out there with my Gene Combination who have real Heath issues . So that's the general Stuff out of the Way, I will finish this now and in my next Blog will put myself in and what I'm doing and i guess why I'm doing it