Editor's note: CNN's Fit Nation Triathlon Challenge athletes have competed in the New York City Triathlon for the past two years. All of CNN's athletes crossed the finish line in 2011 without incident. In 2012, the newest group of athletes will compete in the Nautica Malibu Triathlon instead, because of the earlier scheduled date of the New York City Triathlon. Want to be a part of CNN's team? Submit your video here by December 19!

Organizers of the New York City Triathlon announced this week that they will add an open-water swimming waiver to their registration process for next year's race. The move comes after two athletes died during the swim portion of the 2011 triathlon.

"Swimming in the open water is different than swimming in a pool or taking a bath," said John Korff, the race's director. "Anybody who's jumping in the river has to have done this once or twice, so they're ready to jump in there."

The race will require applicants to sign a waiver stating that they've swum at least a half-mile in open water in the preceding 18 months, or will swim the distance before race day. They'll be asked to sign another waiver the day before the race, indicating that they've completed the requirement.
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Kendrick Henley was one of six CNN viewers chosen to be a part of the 2011 Fit Nation Triathlon Challenge. He trained with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and raced the New York City Triathlon on August 7. Since then Henley has kept up his new healthy lifestyle and recently raced his second 5K since the triathlon. CNN is looking for viewers like Henley to join our 2012 Challenge. Click "Add Your Story" to apply.

The year 2011 might be coming to an end, but Kendrick’s journey and Team Henley’s celebrations continue...

When Kendrick, Coach Keith and I (Coach Mary Ann) became “Team Henley” in January 2011, none of us knew what to expect from the coming year. Kendrick had just been selected for the 2011 Fit Nation Challenge and Coach Keith and I were excited to have the opportunity to coach a new athlete from our hometown of Chicago.

That was pretty much all that we knew, and out of the three of us, Kendrick was taking the biggest risk. He was literally letting the world know that he wanted to change the way he was living, lose weight and take on a healthier lifestyle.
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It’s one year ago this week that I was reading the news on CNN.com and happened across the CNN FitNation Challenge.

The timing was great for me, because in a moment of insanity I had made an annual check-up appointment for the Monday morning after Thanksgiving. Surprise-surprise: my weight was up.

In an attempt to distract my kind doctor from that issue, I mentioned that I was entering a contest to do the NYC Triathlon, and I asked if she thought I was healthy enough to do it.

I have to hand it to her - if she rolled her eyes, it was so subtle that I didn’t notice it. She allowed that since I had recently completed two uneventful 5K races, I would probably be fine to do a triathlon (not that she really believed I would do it).
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Joaquin Brignoni was one of six CNN viewers chosen to be a part of the 2011 Fit Nation Triathlon Challenge. He trained with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and raced the New York City Triathlon on August 7. Since then Brignoni has kept up his new healthy lifestyle and recently raced in an international distance triathlon. CNN is looking for viewers like Brignoni to join our 2012 Challenge. Click "Share Your Story" to apply.

Last year around this time was probably one of the lowest points of my life. I had endured some pretty tough economic losses, was 30 pounds overweight and felt defeated. Not only was I disappointing myself but the example I was setting for my children was not good. I was sick and tired of feeling out of shape and frustrated.

So, I decided to Tri. What I mean is that one year ago I submitted my entry video to CNN Fit Nation for the Tri Challenge. I was ready to make a change and was hopeful that this could be my turning point.
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Kendrick Henley was one of six CNN viewers chosen to be a part of the 2011 Fit Nation Triathlon Challenge. He trained with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and raced the New York City Triathlon on August 7. CNN is looking for viewers like Henley to join our 2012 Challenge. Click "Share Your Story" to apply.

It has been almost a year since I applied to be a part of CNN Six Pack. When I applied, I had been trying to get in shape for the past several years, but could not seem to follow through. So, I thought if I did the CNN challenge, it would motivate me to get fit or at the very least, hold me accountable. So I decided to submit a video. As I thought about what to say, I decided that I would just be honest and plainly spoke into my webcam and sent my video.

I remember getting the call on Christmas Eve from Dr. Sanjay Gupta indicating that I was chosen to be a member of the Six Pack. I was so excited, but said to myself, “I have to do this.” I must say that this was an incredibly hard challenge for me, but it was so rewarding.

I still remember when I first arrived at Well-Fit Triathlon Training Center for my first workout where I was constantly stopping and could not continuously exercise for more than 2 minutes. Then came the small breakthroughs: my old belt being too big, biking 20 miles, running a mile without stopping and finally crossing the finish line in New York. I cannot believe that I did it. I realized that this journey was going to be more than 6 months and that it would take additional time to reach my goals, but I am so glad that I took this first step. It has helped me begin to change my life.

Dr. Scott Zahn was one of six CNN viewers chosen to be a part of the 2011 Fit Nation Triathlon Challenge. He trained with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and raced the New York City Triathlon on August 7. Since then Zahn has kept up his new healthy lifestyle and recently signed up to race a Half Ironman next year. CNN is looking for viewers like Zahn to join our 2012 Challenge. Click "Share Your Story" to apply.

Anniversary noun: A date that people remember because something important happened on that date in the past, as in a wedding anniversary.

Today I am celebrating a health and fitness anniversary. November 10, 2010 was the day that I entered the CNN Fit Nation Challenge and decided that I needed to make some changes in my life to lead a healthier and fit lifestyle.

The reasons that I entered the challenge were many, but primarily I needed to do it for myself. I needed to take charge of my health. The journey started the following day with a trip to the gym to start the process.
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These two months since the NYC Tri have gone by as quickly as the six that preceded it, because life is well, just so different now.

First of all, I have never stopped moving. I did rest for a week following NYC, but soon I was back to swimming, biking and running nearly every day, because I felt so good I did not want to lose any of the fitness I had worked so hard to attain. Also, not only my body, but my APPETITE had become accustomed to that high level of activity, so stopping was never an option.

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I did it, I really did it! I completed the NYC Triathlon, to the very best of my ability, and my homecoming week has been spectacular! The memories and emotions of this life-changing event will generate more than one blog, but right now I want to re-live the technical and physical highlights, starting with the days leading up to the event.

Each of us in the 6-Pack had local trainers, coaches that became friends along the way. The plan that my coach John gave me was simple, practical, and worked perfectly into my lifestyle. Each Sunday he e-mailed me a schedule of swim/bike/run workouts to do for the week. The activities were staggered, and I had freedom to switch them up if needed, but the easiest thing for me was to just do what he prescribed. We trained together at times, and he led me on my first 5-mile run and my first 20-mile bike ride.

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Scott Zahn wrote this blog a day after finishing the Nautica New York City Triathlon as part of the CNN Fit Nation Triathlon Challenge. 

It has been just over 24 hours since I completed the NYC Triathlon and I guess I can officially call myself a triathlete. I felt confident going into the race, but it was much tougher than I thought it would be. The swim was challenging, the bike felt good and the run was a struggle – but I crossed that finish line.

Over the past 24 hours I have had some time to reflect on my accomplishment. I still can’t believe that I did it. I completed something that a year ago I would have never even considered. The race ended and everyone wanted to know “would you do it again?” My reply: “That water is gross. I don’t know if I want to get in that again.” Fast forward 24 hours and I’m looking at future events and thinking about the next challenge.

Being able to finish the race has been energizing and invigorating. I enjoy working towards a goal instead of just “working out.” Could the 2012 NYC Tri be one of those goals? Now that the taste and smell of the Hudson River is gone I think I could do it again. Before I set that as my goal though there are still other events to swim, bike and run. I am a triathlete and that’s what we do, right?!

They did it! CNN's Sixpack,  Joaquin Brignoni, Stasia Cirricione, Kendrick Henley, Nina Lovel, Kas Seerla, and Scott Zahn,  are officially triathletes after successfully completing the Nautica New York City Triathlon on Sunday, as part of the Fit Nation 2011 Triathlon Challenge.

The adventure began bright and early when the group met at 3:40 a.m. to be shuttled over to the race site. It was pouring rain and a little chilly but nothing could dampen the morning's excitement. After a delayed race start, the Sixpack jumped in to the Hudson around 6:40 a.m. All finished the race, with Joaquin Brignoni coming in first for the 6-Pack.

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