I slept 9 hours last night like a freaking log. My current training block is HARD, and the amount of sleeping I'm doing reflects it. Tempo run intervals 3x per week, 2x20' FT bike intervals 2x per week, and now we are getting back to very little rest in the swim workouts. I fucking LOVE IT!!! Remember the Crackhead mottos:
- Harder, longer, faster, tougher, REPEAT
- If it ain't hard, I AIN'T DOING IT (new as of today)
I feel extremely fit and strong right now. Some of that is physical, but a lot of it is mental. I think it can take years in this sport (at least if you're doing Ironman distance) to develop the deep mental skills and well, just serenity, that will allow you to perform at your best. I'm not saying I'm 100% there yet, but I am much closer than I was even 6 months ago. Why? Several reasons.
One: I'm at the statistical age where many people have the realization they are mortal and that there needs to be a purpose in life beyond just getting through it. Some people think the whole marriage/house/kids/full social life is the bomb and is somehow the epitome of fulfillment; I have come to know that true fulfillment lies within--that exterior stuff is just window dressing. This is not to say I don't need skills to exist in the society that I am a part of; it's just that I am making more space in my life for the inner fulfillment. Most of that other stuff is taken care of, besides. I have a good job, a house, friends, nice stuff (and lots of it), good health, I've done a good deal of traveling. Basically I have no "situational" complaints. Although finding Mr. Crackhead would be a true bonus. But I don't obsess about that, either.
Two: While I entered this sport for different reasons than why I am still in it (see earlier post on why I got into it in the first place), I have found this to be "my way" of traveling The Path. I am not particularly fast (my Ironman PR is 13:21; I'm shooting for 12:30 or less in 2006), but I am consistent, and face it, you HAVE to like training to be successful at the long distance stuff. If you don't like training, get the fuck off the train....there are plenty of other passengers who would like a seat! I LOVE training. I love the feeling of accomplishment that I can get my body to do these things, even more so during training than racing! That's why I "got over" a DNF at my only Ironman race in 2005, Ironman Wisconsin (2nd time I DNF'ed there). My training was FUCKING AWESOME, I was on fire, I was set up to do great things. And I DID THEM IN TRAINING. I just didn't get to bring it all to fruition at the race, oh well. But I digress. If you can get yourself into that magical zone, or "flow" state during 30% or better of your training, my my, let me tell you that IS Nirvana. I get that in almost all my runs (and I am running 5x a week), and certainly during my bike interval workouts. Swimming I'm not so concerned with right now, and my swimming is suffering from all the strength training I'm doing (although my upper body is pretty buff right now, if you ask me), but when I do get the opportunity to swim straight >2000 yards (2000 yards just isn't very far, don't you agree? It's like did I just swim or what?), I am just floating in my mind and literally in the pool. I know I'm really rambling here, but bear with me you might find something useful in this. Even though I live alone, and you'd think I have all this alone time, I relish my training time, because it's the place where I learned to JUST BE. And I'm learning to take that outside the training and into my everyday life as much as possible. I understand that I still have a commitment to abide by certain social norms and such, but I can do that in the context of my own being rather than the silly so-called "truths," prejudices, opinions, emotions, etc., that run around in my brain. I'm sure that doesn't make too much sense to those of you reading this, but it does to me.
Three: I went through some rather interesting (read CRAPPY) emotional experiences over the last 6 months. I could sense there was something happening to me that I needed to take notice of. It happened to coincide with the most focused training I'd ever done. But it took a toll on me mentally because I didn't honor what was happening. So I made it my business to reflect on all of that this fall in a big way.
Four: I now consider this "just being" to be another skill for me to master. Yet I fully understand that I can never achieve 100% mastery. It's not like that! Hell, if I could master the entire I Ching, I might think I'm *close* but that's not going to happen anytime soon either! But, if I can progressively increase the time I spend "just being" without intrusion of thought, emotion or action, then I will consider myself successful.
Oh--I was supposed to talk about workouts. Here they are:
7:30AM Swim 2650 yards :57. WU: 200 swim, 200 pull, 200 kick, 4 x 50 (10") Swim Golf MS: 6 x 150 (15") as 100 Hard, 50 Easy. 100 easy swim. 3 x 200 (15") pull, Steady with excellent stroke. 6 x 25 (15") as 25 Hard, 25 Easy CD: 100 easy swim.
I LOVE (HATE!!!!) these 150 workouts. Obviously, this is a shorty, and I will build up to 15x150. But you can't get bored doing this workout. And it KICKS ASS for building Muscular Endurance.
1:34PM Run 1:00 as WU: 15' Easy, 15' Steady MS: 20' Mod-Hard/z4 CD: 10' Steady
Gotta love tempo work!
I'm tired, I need to eat!
Remember: It's not suffering if it's something you WANT TO DO.
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4 comments:
I could read the motivation coming off the page. All your posts have motivated me.
it's hard to put your words and workout in context, you're obviously in what would seem peak physical condition, and are training hard... but, since we are new to you and your blog, we don't know what you are training for event wise (i scrolled back through your archives to try and ascertain this)
could you share with us your planned 'event's that are upcoming? guess, i'm trying to understand if you have an offseason, as in now, and based on your training, how you are going to build towards your 'events'?
or, as Lance would say "there's no offseason"!
I have been reading a lot and thinking a lot about Buddhism. Sounds like you might be a bit on that path as well. I think it is great. In fact, although I do meditate, I find training a sort of meditation as well.
Hey, Brett. Yeah, I'm getting into the Buddhist thing. A FANTASTIC book that I just read for the 2nd time (the first time I didn't get it) is Going to Pieces without Falling Apart by Mark Epstein. And I'm studying the I Ching. But I'm not feeling pressed to begin meditating, as I've found I "do" it while training, and that's good enough for me right now. Share on!
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