The last couple of weeks, I've been feeling tired. Tired of training, tired of talking about and thinking about Ironman. I've heard myself say "I'm really looking forward to being done with Ironman," to more than one person. I say that I can't wait to have more time, less structured training and not feel obligated to spend the entire day on my bike, even if it is raining. These things are true, but I'm already starting to feel nostalgic for Ironman training. I have loved the journey (ahem, sorry Muggy!). Slowly I've gotten used to packing my assortment of workout clothes and snacks each night, waking up at 5 (6:30 feels luxurious), filling bottles of Gatorade and Perpetuum the night before a big ride, taping Gus to my bike frame. I look forward to the different post work-out sensations: the scent of chlorine on Mondays and Wednesdays, the tight calves after hard runs, the insatiable hunger that follows a six hour bike ride. I love pushing myself to my perceived limit, only to realize I can go further and faster.
After the hardest training weekend of my life, I've started my taper (woohoo!) and am trying to prepare mentally for the big day. This article provided a bit of perspective. I'm trying to think of the race as a celebration, rather than a dreaded test. Muggy, who was that teacher who called exams a "celebration of knowledge?"
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My almost-30-year-old brain is failing me. I can't remember at all! Must be the very taxing journey I'm on. But wait, I've used the dreaded j-word so now I need to go puke.
ReplyDeleteYay for Ironman! I am so excited for you to do this race, have it go amazing, be so happy and satisfied, and then have time to hang out with me, a lowly Tinman. I need some serious motivation to get my ass out the door: I haven't exercised at all since I got to Portland, just done brutal manual labor on Jan's house (it went on the market today). Clearly, I need to stop "commenting" and start writing an email :)
I think the article is great - getting to the start line is a celebration of all you've done to get to that point and how lucky you are to have the body, brains (both smarts and mental fortitude), and bucks to get there.
ReplyDeleteYou're going to have a life-changing experience and I can't wait to see it.