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| Rock and Roll Marathon with my friend |
The trick as we get closer to our race date will be for me to tackle the longer workouts even though the race will probably not take place. That is something that probably every triathlete around the world has struggled with. IM has waited until the last minute to cancel their events this past year. I guess I can understand to some degree their hesitancy to cancel events to sooner and some people have said it is an insurance issue, but it would be nice to have a 30 or 45 day window for them to cancel. It just seems that it would be only fair.
But then again, life isn't fair, is it?
A quick summary of last week
I had two swims, both swims I did around 8 pm. That is a new time for me to swim and I actually like it. It has forced me out of the easy chair at night. Instead of falling asleep watching tv, I go to the gym and swim. No, I repeat no major improvements in my swim. Hopefully as we progress in this cycle, my swimming will improve. I am starting to "feel" the water again and my relationship with the water will hopefully improve as we go.
I had a few runs this week, with a long run of 7 miles on Saturday. I am still embarrassed to run on the treadmill at the gym with other people around. I lack so much self esteem it isn't even funny. There is such a Jekyll and Hyde thing going on inside of my head it is freaking crazy! I love using the treadmill because it challenges me to move my legs faster, I guess you might say a quicker rotation of sorts. But the downside is my fat body moving as I run on the treadmill. The fat that bounces up and down is discouraging and I am ashamed of what I have become.
Now I know that I should feel or be more confident. I can say look at what I have accomplished, the half or full marathons, or even the IM races that I have trained for and competed in, but that doesn't stop me from thinking that everyone who looks at me is laughing at me on the inside. Oh well, not going to get this problem fixed by writing about it....
Bike, a few bike workouts and a long ride on Friday of 30 miles. The bike is feeling good, but then again, we are inside on a trainer. The challenge comes from riding outside on varied road services, elevation and the all deciding wind factor! Both Texas and Arizona have had some serious wind on course. Texas in 2017 was the worst for me, but if I am being honest [there is that freaking word again] every Texas race that has used the Hardy Toll Road has had brutal with wind, at least in one direction.
Which leads me to say, if you are thinking about embarking on this IM journey, loss weight first! Do not follow my example! Please save yourself a lot of heartache. I know the whole idea of IM is that "Anything is Possible" no doubt, but you could really save yourself the emotional and physical damage by losing the excess weight before attempting the race. The excess weight comes into the entire event, but never so [searching for the right word] glaring/evident [not sure if either word is right] than on the bike. Carrying an extra 50lbs on the bike will cause you to fight 1 or 2 percent inclines, compared to others who laugh at those grades. I know if I say "Trust me on this one" no one would, because I probably wouldn't listen to someone else either. But really, trust me on this one. You will save yourself a bunch of avoidable punishment...
With that said, if the race does happen in April, I will be at least 50lbs over my desired weight to race. I have never been at my desired weight to race and I was hoping [before COVID] that 2020 would have me racing at my desired goal weight. I really just want to feel what it would be like to race without the extra baggage attached.
To which everyone who reads this is saying, "It's on you!" Literally and figuratively right... It is, but that is like saying I don't understand why people take drugs or drink... It is an addiction that is really hard to break. The Apostle Paul in the bible writes these words: The good I want to do I don't do and the evil I don't want to do is what I do. [that is my paraphrase of his words]
Those words are so true.
Well let's see what kind of trouble I can get into this week
Peace and love
Paul