Kona Training Update #1!!!

Just kidding! Ten weeks or so ago, my intention was to blog my training successes and failures en route to Kona. In my mind, the posts would follow the formula, success, minor setback, and more success! See below:

Had an awesome killer bike session! Had five minute, twenty minute, and three hour personal bests this weekend ....again! It was hot.. but then I set some sort of record on my brick run as well! Awesome! (Success, fake setback, more success)

That scenario actually did happen, once,  in early August... aka my first  official week of training. (minus the again) I didn't get around to blogging that week and then, unfortunately, not much happened that fit into my proposed  formula after that. The weeks after that, I hardly wanted to blog "Got sick for a month and couldn't manage to swim more than 50 yards without pulling for two weeks!" It's really not good blog material and no one wants to hear anyone whine about something someone chooses to do that is really, when it comes down to it, a luxury.

Finally got a pic with my way-cooler-than -me Bike!

The other issue was the lack of thinking about the race. The brain likes to be active at all times. For some of us that tend towards rumination, we have the gift of focus. Focus can be called different things... the words "focus, drive, and determination" connote positive images. The more negative descriptions are obsessive and worrying.





Well my focus has been elsewhere...my brain has been busy with other pursuits. Never in my life have I had less 'space' than I do now. Lack of space meaning lack of sleep, time, and energy for any activity not directly related to working and other 'work' projects. This is not necessarily a bad thing. MOST of the things on the plate are positive and things that will grow into something fulfilling and rewarding. But that also means that for the first time since I've been pursuing triathlon, I've been 'not' obsessed with it 24/7. While this can hardly be considered a bad thing, it does make me a little nervous going into the race.

Gettin' it in at Energy Lab

Here I am, I have managed to qualify for the biggest amateur event of our sport, but do I really deserve to be there? Sure I have put in the time, even when I couldn't breathe correctly for weeks, only got four hours of sleep, or was at my absolute wits end, but the nobility of that (often futile-seeming) effort doesn't mean that it constituted 'quality training'

Awesome shirt, courtesy of my #1 supporter :)

So all that said, my expectations are minimal performance-wise. Fun-wise, I am turning the screws here. Big pressure :) I really just want to try to take a real break and enjoy the time. I'm very thankful to have qualified, and I'm very thankful to have so much great support from friends and family. My number # goal is to get some experience, enjoy the ride, and be happy with whatever the day brings. Also, I don't want to finish so late that my friends in Atlanta get too tired to stay up :)

EDIT: I also want to think of something cool to do at the finish line.. I have tested my back and shoulder flexibility and everything is definitely too tight for any gymnastics... unless I can suddenly revive my back layout...

Sadie and her 'Official  Mascot' shirt

Go ATC and now Energy Lab, too :) I'm really looking forward to enjoying the time in Hawaii and all the exciting things to come after with Energy Lab, John's first marathon in December, and Ironman Texas in 2013... and beyond!

Here's a cool interview on mind and others Kona training from Beginner Triathlete, the website that originally was the answer to my endless questions at the start of my affair with triathlon in 2009. http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=2519