Posted by Matt
I'm a bit behind, but I wanted to share my thoughts from a few weeks ago. My training certainly hasn't been nearly as extensive as our fellow bloggers, but I was already struggling to find out where in my schedule to fit in all the necessary workouts. But then Katie and I had a great training weekend, and I got reminded why I do events like this to begin with.
It was the rainy weekend of Feb 8th, but Katie and I woke up on Saturday to find relatively clear skies. Immediately, biking became the preferred activity and we headed out on the road. The ride didn't start well - debris from the storm closed the shoulder of our planned route, forcing us into the street and far too close to speeding traffic. Then, the rain restarted much quicker than anticipated. So we detoured, we found a new route, and we explored our community. We found roads and neighborhoods that we hadn't seen yet in our 3 months in our new apartment. It wasn't a long ride by ironman standards, but it embodied the reasons I love to bike- you can explore places and see things in an intimate way that no other mode of transit allows.
On Sunday, we woke up to heavy rain. I was excited...I had been looking forward to a trail run in the rain fore a long time. Splashing in the muddy puddles with my two favorite running companions (my gorgeous wife Katie and very eager dog Kona) exceeded my already high expectations. nothing too fancy, but a really enjoyable run. After a quick muffin baking session, we headed to the public pool. While not as adventurous as our previous events, we had a new workout book in hand. As a non competitive swimmer, I often struggle on figuring out what exactly to do in the pool. But with a clear plan in place, I had one of my best workouts yet.
While I enjoy following Chen's and Rachel's weekly workouts, you won't see my stats here (I don't even record the details myself). For me, training isn't really about my splits or the miles logged. It is about exploring the world in a new way, having a little adventure (especially if it is with my wicked awesome wife), and pushing your body (and mind) at the same time.
I can't believe you guys went trail running that day... I did my run on concrete and still felt like I was up to my ankles in water the whole time. Love the picture of you guys and Kona - he's so happy out there!
ReplyDelete- Chen
Haha, and I skipped an outdoor ride completely that weekend and didn't run until the rain was long gone that afternoon :) I'm definitely not as fun as you guys.
ReplyDeleteI like to log my miles and stuff though because I enjoy reading other people's miles. It's almost like a science experiment. Ok, this person did x,y,z and (did, or did not) enjoy the Ironman. Whether or not I enjoy the Ironman is yet to be seen, but it'll be interesting and hopefully helpful to others to see the result :p If I wasn't as Type A, I'd definitely have more fun with your approach :)
I am with you Rachel, I record everything! I am also recording what I eat this week just out of curiosity. Well at least I was... until I ate a whole bag of candy yesterday and then I conveniently stopped recording ;)
DeleteI'm not disciplined enough to record my food, I think because the data will reveal that I should probably eat less sugar! :)
DeleteBut for workouts/race training I def like to go back and what types of training and taper led to which results. It's not an exact science of course because all people are different and even the same person is different on different days. But, I like having the info regardless!
GREAT family photo :).
ReplyDelete& puddle runs are the best, but a muddy trail puddle run takes it to a new level! Sounds fun!
- Alexis