This song has nothing to do with racing. It came on as I was typing up this post. Enjoy!
INSPIRATION
I am not easily inspired by people. In fact, since I started triathlon, only one person has inspired me to be something greater than I am.
ONE....in 10 years.
And, it was only recently.
You probably already know who it is.
It was her entire race report, from training to fueling to race day. Probably most importantly, race day.
I know tons of people who do Ironman. I know people who do sprints and olys.
I have NEVER been around someone who was willing to give SO MUCH to make her dream come true. It was a level of dedication, no excuses attitude that I was absolutely drawn to.
I fond myself wanting to be just like her.
Given the chaos that is her life right now, there is NO reason for me to EVER miss a workout or not give it everything I have, every day.
That's what great coaches do. They lead by example. Great coaches inspire athletes to BE better than athletes ever dreamed possible.
With this in mind, I started formulating my race plan with Liz.
A few months back, I read some research that demonstrated that we should keep our goals a secret, don't share them with anyone. The reason for this is that the "risk" of sharing goals is emotionally so big for us that simply sharing them gives us a false sense of accomplishment.
Interesting, huh? And 100% true for me. With that in mind, I won't be sharing my goals anymore. Of course, I'll tell you after the fact.
My race this coming weekend:
I have a plan in place. It's unlike any plan that I've done before. I feel great about my swim, especially after last week where I held a 1:22 pace for 12 minutes at the end of a 1.2 mile swim. I was thrilled. My swim coach was beyond happy, especially when I told him he was in my head the entire second half: STRETCH, Tea. What are you doing, Tea? Pull, Pull, REACH.
For the bike, my goals are pretty simple. Simple but never easy. Hold 95-100% threshold for 45-50 minutes.
On the run, I'm breaking away from old plans. I'm trying something new. A new approach to racing off the bike. I'm really excited to get out there.
As Liz told me today: You've met your inner BEAST. GET OUT THERE. BE AN ANIMAL.