Comparing "Physique"

Wow...so, since December, i've been working on trying to keep some leg strength while backing off from cycling a little bit. The thing is....cycling was great for my quads...and that is about it...it did absolutely nothing for my butt and I think my legs could be stronger. So....enter some "lunges/squats/wall sits".......i've been doing them maybe twice a week and I TOTALLY over did it yesterday, but I love it. I feel sore! It's been forever since i've felt sore and it's really fun =0. The best part about all this, is that it takes 15 minutes.....and I HURT today!

So, this was interesting, the other day I was looking at pictures from when I did mainly olympic distance and triathlon.....and then my first half ironman. Maybe to the average person, you couldn't tell, but I was laughing because while "weight wise" i'm actually the same....oddly enough....but, my "physique" to me, is totally different when you compare pictures of me racing shorter versus longer distances. Obviously, when you think about it, you know while training for the Half Iron/Full Iron distance you are swimming/biking and running *that* much further, but it's amazing to me to compare the pictures. Ok, so you guys will be like "whatever"...but, for me, it's really funny to see! Check it out:

Above: post-2006 LA Triathlon (this is where I qualified for the Minneapolis Tri for the elite division). My arms look so little!

Another LA picture---2006Above---My first half Ironman, the SOMA half----also 2006----arms still looking reasaonable.....
Above--on the run in SOMA 2006.....
Above...Ironman Florida Finish...2007......arms pretty strong!!

Above: September of 2008, two months out from Ironman Arizona....DUDE....hello swimming arms/shoulders! Above--on the bike in Arizona....hello quads....must have been all the riding?? =0

Above: Ironman Arizona...this past November. PROOF in my back muscles that I swam a lot =0....

It's just cute/funny to me to see how bodies can change! I think with Ironman, I just completely "bulked" not in a bad way, but just in the way that ANY muscle I had, rally came out......although I will say......I am living proof that you can train 20 hours a week and NOT have abs of steel. Granted, I did absolutely NO core strength while doing Ironman training, which probably isn't the way to go....however, for those of you who DO train 15-20 hours a week, how do you fit in core work? I typically did two sports a day, and I was working at the time, so I don't know how people also fit in core strength while training this much!

I'm not complaining, I certainly don't need 6 pack abs, I was just surprised how defined everything else got, minus my stomach. I'm also living proof that sometimes, it's not just HARD cardio that blasts your stomach....I did plenty of hard cardio and still had a soft stomach!

This was a fun project for me, comparing my physique from shorter racing to longer racing!! Very cool!
Oh-----I'm not looking for compliments =0, just comparing the two distances and how different I think my body handles those types of pressures and what not. I'm also in awe of people who can fit in core workouts while training full time for long distance races. This was a fun comparison for me and it makes sense that our bodies would adapt to whatever distance we're going because we're using our muscles for shorter or longer durations and at different speeds. Thanks for reading!