I must say that the sport of triathlon has taught me a lot about myself. I am most definitely a competitor, I thrive off of routine, I love to set and achieve goals and I HATE, I MEAN HATE when I disappoint myself. There is always a huge part of me that is extremely aware at how blessed and lucky i am to have a healthy body that is capable of moving at semi-fast speeds in the sports of swimming, biking and running. But, there is another part of me that wants to move at wicked-fast speeds and I get really frustrated when I hit a plateau, when I don't feel like I am racing at my potential, etc...
After a winter full of training and doing single sport races to get in shape for the triathlon season, I was faced with the Terre Haute Triathlon this past weekend. Here is what I learned: at this point in the season, I am not any damn faster than I was last year at the same time. That sucks!!!! I worked so hard and it just sucks when that first race basically kicks your ass instead of giving you confidence for the season to come. My swim is the exact same as it has always been, my bike is probably a little better, and I am running the same as last year if not a little slower.
So, what do I do? Well, I guess I just put my head down and dig a little deeper, run a little faster, swim a little more and bike a little harder. Oh, and sleep a lot lot more! This is ironic to me--it is so strange that most of us just don't give up. We don't say "hey, I suck and I quit!" Instead, we extend all means to take us where we want to go. That, in essence, is awesome within it's own right.
I am doing a bike race on Saturday (65 mile road race) and hoping to get in lots of bike miles on Sunday as well (maybe a trip to Louisville to ride the course?????) Then, next Sunday (the 14), is Kansas 70.3. Jason and I are road tripping it to Kansas for the first 1/2 ironman of the year. I'm really stoked about this race and can't wait for the challenge.
No comments:
Post a Comment