In March, I wrote this post about things I've learned. I have been thinking about that post a lot.
Last week was a recovery week. Coming off a build, I'm always thrilled to have a recovery week. Yet, the week of training feels a little off.
Mid week, I had a bike test. More improvement on the bike = very good thing. If we've seen anything, it's the improvement on the bike is resulting in much faster running paces.
For the first time, I got nervous about my race. All of a sudden, I felt overwhelmed. Pacing and fueling and start times and on and on and on.
Why was I nervous? I wasn't nervous at my last two 70.3's. (Granted they were awhile back). Now of all times, when things are going the way I want them to....why am I nervous now?
It's because for the first time in awhile, I am doing things the right way. It's probably the first time EVER.
I really didn't care about my last 70.3. I went into it half assed. Oh, I did the training. I put in the time, but I wasn't emotionally vested in the race.
This time, it's different. It's not in any way easy.
Meal planning. Negotiating my training schedule. Training with intention.
Somewhere in me, I've found a new determination, new thresholds that I wasn't willing to bust through.
Of course, for most workouts, no one sees the work. Sure you see the end result on Strava, but that's like looking up someone's race time. It tells you when they finished, but it doesn't tell you the story of their struggles. It doesn't tell you about the fight they went through for that time.
As the race nears, I've found that there are more distractions. I'm avoiding toxic athletes and talking with the most supportive athletes. What I'm doing is hard enough. I want to be around other people who are working their asses off to accomplish great things. I want to be around the athletes who focus on the process, their journey. The ones who do the work every day without complaining. The ones who take the hard days with a grain of salt and celebrate the little wins. The ones who are humble and support other athletes regardless of speeds and paces.
The ones who are doing everything they can.
Last week was a recovery week. Coming off a build, I'm always thrilled to have a recovery week. Yet, the week of training feels a little off.
Mid week, I had a bike test. More improvement on the bike = very good thing. If we've seen anything, it's the improvement on the bike is resulting in much faster running paces.
For the first time, I got nervous about my race. All of a sudden, I felt overwhelmed. Pacing and fueling and start times and on and on and on.
Why was I nervous? I wasn't nervous at my last two 70.3's. (Granted they were awhile back). Now of all times, when things are going the way I want them to....why am I nervous now?
It's because for the first time in awhile, I am doing things the right way. It's probably the first time EVER.
I really didn't care about my last 70.3. I went into it half assed. Oh, I did the training. I put in the time, but I wasn't emotionally vested in the race.
This time, it's different. It's not in any way easy.
Meal planning. Negotiating my training schedule. Training with intention.
Somewhere in me, I've found a new determination, new thresholds that I wasn't willing to bust through.
Of course, for most workouts, no one sees the work. Sure you see the end result on Strava, but that's like looking up someone's race time. It tells you when they finished, but it doesn't tell you the story of their struggles. It doesn't tell you about the fight they went through for that time.
As the race nears, I've found that there are more distractions. I'm avoiding toxic athletes and talking with the most supportive athletes. What I'm doing is hard enough. I want to be around other people who are working their asses off to accomplish great things. I want to be around the athletes who focus on the process, their journey. The ones who do the work every day without complaining. The ones who take the hard days with a grain of salt and celebrate the little wins. The ones who are humble and support other athletes regardless of speeds and paces.
The ones who are doing everything they can.
I never claimed to be the YOU GO GIRL type.