I haven't taken to the blog in almost two months, not out of spite, mostly out of lack of inspiration. The build-up to and release of completing IMTX sort of left me in a vacuum with no real race goals for the summer. Vacations came and went and I continued to work hard on my training, focusing mainly on getting stronger on the bike and pressing my run times to the brink of exhaustion with each session. When I began the journey into triathlon, it was a challenge to cycle in higher heart rate zones and then polish the workout with a run off of the trainer. After significant time in the gym and on the pavement, I am finding it much easier to hammer on the bike and run negative splits afterwards. The issue with spending so much focus on training is that I lost my inspiration and got lost in the trees and forgot about the forest. It took a few negative life events to bring me back to equilibrium, and as one of my favorite scriptures says, "in your weakness, my strength is made perfect." I have set some new goals for 2013 and am happily back to racing.
If you are new to this sport you probably don't know who Jesse Thomas is. Any seasoned triathlete knows his story and follows his blog. To keep it short, Jesse was an all-American steeplechaser for Stanford and decided to try a triathlon, showing up with a borrowed bike and some aviator sunglasses. He won the race. Jesse is old school...he doesn't shave his legs, he doesn't buy into the hype and he is likable. Most importantly, he respects the sport and knows that it is a gift. He wrote a blog post that I thought was interesting for those moments that all of us come to when we need to dig deep and push through. The SNL references are classic: http://triathlon.competitor.com/2013/08/features/triathlife-with-jesse-thomas-mantra-power_82825
The post talks about having a personal mantra that you remind yourself of when your mind tells you that you cannot go any further. The relevance to my life is that I actually used it in the last couple of races and it works. BTB, KMF, SY, NGU.
The Houston Triathlon was held on Labor Day and turned out to be a great race (after being rained out last year). The swim is challenging (choppy water), the bike is flat and fast and the run is a windy route through Towne Lake. I turned in a 2:36 which is another PR and extreme progress for having only raced triathlon for less than 2 years. I ended up placing 12th in my age group (of 50) and 87th overall (of approx. 1,200). Progress.
My ultimate goal for the remainder of the year is to qualify for the Hy-Vee Age-Group National Championships and my only shot is to place in the top 15 of my age-group in the Galveston 5150 on Sept 22. I am hopeful, but remain fearful so that my training stays angry and with purpose. My swim needs improvement and I have to run sub 7:30 to do it....It should be an interesting day.
As I have done with each and every other blog post, I'll close with a thought. The scripture above is precise. Sometimes we get comfortable and forget what it's like to struggle. God likes the struggle because we are most receptive in this state. Take your frustrations, weaknesses, anger, stress, etc and harness it into positive energy. Ask yourself how you can better spend your time. Say a mantra or two.
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