When she was little, Sheri Zimmerer Branum was a nonstop bundle of energy. She fell in love with sports shortly after she started walking, ran everywhere and became an avid soccer player. When I was 2, all I wanted for Christmas was a Green Bay Packers football helmet, she says.In high school she played soccer on the boys team, then went to Bowling Green where she was a central midfielder for four years. Now 46, shes still the same high-energy athlete and person. Every day she bounces from her jobs as an occupational therapist and high school soccer coach to training and competing as an elite age-group triathlete.I love being busy, says Branum, who lives in Milan, Ohio, with her husband and two teenagers. Every day I like to be busy and I look forward to being busy.Many of those busy hours are spent swimming, biking and running in triathlon, a sport she embraced in 2003 after a former college soccer teammate dared her to enter a sprint-distance triathlon in Cleveland. Her time wasnt memorable, but that didnt matter. She was hooked by the challenge of trying to succeed in three disciplines while being inspired by the athletes all around her.Thirteen years after her first tri, she finds it unbelievable that she continues to excel and improve. In September, she competed on behalf of the U.S. in the International Triathlon Union World Triathlon Grand Final championships in Cozumel, Mexico, winning the bronze medal in the Olympic-distance race and finishing fifth in sprint distance. I never thought I would be able to achieve that level of fitness and competitiveness, she says.Yet ever since those days as an energetic kid, her competitive streak has been part of her success story. A lean 5-foot-2, 100-pound dynamo under short, blond locks, she has always stood tall in sports. She says the support she received from her late father, Jerry Zimmerer, has been invaluable. I race by Sheri Zimmerer Branum in honor of my dad, who instilled in me from a young age that I could achieve anything I wanted to, and that dynamite comes in small packages, she says.Branum has been an occupational therapist for 21 years, treating patients who have suffered strokes and brain injuries, have heart ailments, and those with mobility-inhibiting diseases like Parkinsons.My goal is to rehabilitate people of all ages with various disabilities or disease processes to reach their maximum level of independence, she says.She works for Firelands Regional Medical Center in Sandusky, Ohio, traveling across the northern part of the state to aid people in their homes. Its exciting what you can do for them to keep them safe and independent, she says.The job also has given her insights into how to take care of herself as an athlete. As she has moved into her 40s, she listens more to her body when it sends signals that shes overtraining or might be close to an injury. She tries to heed those signals and back off. Plus, she has added more weight training to maintain strength.You might not tell by looking at me, she says, laughing.What she learned in earning her masters degree in occupational therapy and through experience and continued study has been invaluable. Its helped me with understanding the body holistically, she says. To know everything must work together in order to perform your best.That knowledge led Branum to change her eating habits about three years ago to fuel her long, active days. She now eats six to 10 small meals a day. The goal is to have a constant flow of nutrients and hydration.As the kids got older I was able to train more frequently, and then I noticed my nutritional demands changed, she says. I was feeling lightheaded frequently, so I started always having food with me and making sure I was always snacking and eating. Immediately, she felt better and her performance improved.If Im feeling sluggish, I usually eat 100 to 200 calories and I feel better, she says. Her menu is full of apples, bananas, peanut and almond butters, rice cakes, chicken, vegetables, salads and whey protein shakes.Branum gets in some type of training every day. Even on an off day, shell do a 30-minute bike ride. On most days shes up before sunrise, doing some laundry and house cleanup before heading off for a swim, bike or run workout. Then comes work, followed by two to three hours of soccer practice during the season. Sometimes, shell sneak in another workout late in the day.She has coached soccer for 15 years, since her daughter began playing. Now she coaches her daughters varsity girls team at Edison High in Milan. Soccer was Branums first love, and remains a big part of her life, but she no longer plays. Sometimes in practice her athletes will try to coax her into action, but she mostly declines.Recently she was invited to play an indoor match and accepted. But she quickly benched herself. I was like, This is a recipe for a serious injury and Ill be regretting my decision, she says. So I played three minutes and told my daughter she could take all my shifts, because I didnt want to get hurt. Thats the last thing I need.Perhaps most impressive of all -- and in spite of her busy schedule -- Branum says shes a better triathlete now than she was 10 years ago because of her improved cardiovascular fitness and technical skills in each sport. In 2015, she was third in the sprint-distance (750-meter swim, 20K bike, 5K run) national age-group (45-49) championships. This year, she has taken first overall among women in nine regional sprint- or Olympic-distance triathlons or road races. She also set a PR of 1:26:20 in the Columbus Half Marathon in October.Her highlight, though, was representing the U.S. with her performance at the triathlon worlds in Cozumel. To her it was a dream to enjoy the camaraderie of teammates while competing against athletes from across the world. I was excited when I got [the USA racing singlet] in the mail and excited to wear it, she says.Branum had never done an open-water swim in the Caribbean until her Olympic-distance (1.5K swim, 40K bike, 10K run) race in Mexico. The current and buoys were shifting, which made for a tightly packed swim, and she came out of the water in 33rd place. But she poured it on in the bike portion with the 11th-best time before posting the top 10K run (41:34) to clinch her spot on the podium.She has had one success after another the past two years. This year in Omaha, Nebraska, she again qualified for the U.S. team at the 2017 age-group world championships in the Netherlands. When you start to believe in yourself, then you start to see even better results, she says.The combination of belief and busyness has been a winning one for Branum, and triathlon has become her perfect passion.Its an amazing challenge to try to improve your swim and your bike and your run while being healthy and fulfilling all your other life goals, she says. Paul Stastny Jersey . Roman Josi had a goal and an assist to lead the Predators to a 4-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Monday night. Nick Holden Jersey . As the crowd erupted, Davis knocked the ball off the glass and back into his hands. With 1:14 to go in overtime, Davis sixth block also became his 17th rebound. That, along with his 32 points -- which tied a career high -- proved too much for Denver to overcome, and the Pelicans held on for their third straight victory, 111-107 on Sunday night. http://www.goldenknightssale.com/authentic-cody-eakin-golden-knights-jersey/ . Scott Kazmir allowed four hits in seven shutout innings, Michael Brantley hit a two-run homer in a three-run first inning and the Indians maintained their hold on an AL wild-card spot with a 4-1 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. Cody Eakin Jersey . Ronaldo produced a spectacular individual performance on Tuesday, scoring all three goals and guiding Portugal into the next years World Cup in Brazil with a 3-2 victory in Sweden. The Real Madrid forward has scored 66 goals in 2013, but the last three may be the boost he needs to upstage Messi after FIFA unexpectedly extended the voting period for the Ballon dOr to Nov. William Carrier Golden Knights Jersey . -- In a span of seven Washington Redskins offensive plays, Justin Tuck sacked Robert Griffin III four times.BOSTON -- The Red Sox have 50 wins by the end of June after getting 69 all last year. Theyre in first place in the AL East one season after finishing last. Bostons turnaround rolled on with a 5-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday. There were smiles in the clubhouse but hardly a sense of satisfaction. "With 50 wins, people are going to keep talking about that. Its not enough," Shane Victorino said. "Weve got to keep going." His hard grounder eluded first baseman Josh Thole for an error as Jonathan Diaz raced home with the winning run in the ninth inning. Thole entered in the bottom of the third when Adam Lind left with mid-back tightness and Thole was playing first base for just the second time in 316 major league games. "Youve just got to know who to hit it to, I guess," Victorino said with a smile. "I played against Josh all those years in New York and he was a catcher." Thole, acquired from the New York Mets along with pitcher R.A. Dickey in December, had played first at Triple-A Buffalo before he was called up on June 7. "Ive played first base. Thats what Im here for," he said. "Ive got to catch the ball and make an out." Jose Bautista tied the game in the ninth against Koji Uehara (1-0) with a solo homer, his 19th of the season and third in two games. On the previous at-bat, Victorino made a sliding catch near the right-field line on Jose Reyes fly ball. "I think a lot of people doubted this team, the capabilities that we had," Victorino said. "Weve got that target on our back because were in first place. But you know what? Were up for the challenge." Brandon Snyder singled with one out in the bottom half against Juan Perez (1-1), Jacoby Ellsbury walked and Casey Janssen relieved. Diaz ran for Snyder, and Thole couldnt handle Victorinos shot. The Red Sox won for the fifth time in six games and improved to an AL-best 50-34. For the first time since 2009, theyve won 50 games before any other AL team. They also reached 50 wins by the end of June for the fourth time in team history following 1946, 1978 and 2008. Their longest losing streak is three games. "Weve been consistent," manager John Farrell said. "I think it speaks of overall depth of the team.dddddddddddd Its certainly not a milestone by any means. Weve got a long way to go." Toronto has lost five of seven following an 11-game winning streak that tied the club record. At 40-41, the Blue Jays are in last place, 8 1-2 games behind the Red Sox. "I dont think its where we expected or wanted to be in spring training," Toronto starter Mark Buehrle said. "Hopefully, we can go on some more winning streaks." Manager John Gibbons said the Blue Jays had plenty of chances before Tholes error. "That might be the most frustrating loss of the year right there," he said, "I cant remember that many opportunities." Reyes homered leading off the seventh, his second of the season and first since April 5. Reyes returned Wednesday after missing 66 games because of a severely sprained left ankle. Boston starter Ryan Dempster allowed two runs, seven hits and three walks in 5 1-3 innings. Buehrle gave up four runs and seven hits in six innings. Ryan Lavarnways RBI double and Snyders two-run double gave Boston a 3-0 lead in the second. It was the first big-league hit of the season for Snyder, brought up from Triple-A on Tuesday when struggling third baseman Will Middlebrooks was sent to Pawtucket. Colby Rasmus RBI single and Maicer Izturis run-scoring forceout cut the gap to 3-2 in the fourth. After Jonny Gomes RBI double boosted the margin in the fifth, the Blue Jays loaded the bases with no outs in the sixth on a walk to Thole and singles by Rajai Davis and Rasmus. Dempster got J.P. Arencibia to pop out, and Craig Breslow retired Izturis on a popout and then struck out pinch-hitter Emilio Bonifacio. NOTES: Davis stolen base in the fourth was his fifth in three days. ... Boston SS Stephen Drew missed his second game with a right hamstring injury. ... After a day off Monday, the Red Sox begin their last series of a nine-game homestand with the first of three against San Diego. Robbie Erlin (1-0) pitches for San Diego against John Lackey (5-5). ... The Blue Jays open a four-game series at home against Detroit on Monday with R.A. Dickey (7-8) pitching against Jose Alvarez (1-1). ' ' '