Why take on something so massive as training for three
sports to compete in one race, essentially against only myself? It is real simple…and super complicated.
The short answer is – I got my heart broke - - - -Big time
this summer and needed something healthy to obsess about. I firmly believe “Food is the most abused anti-anxiety
and Endorphins the most underutilized anti-depressant.” I had to do SOMETHING… While intellectually I
knew that the heart would heal, I needed to kick start the process.
So I bought a bike (we are getting to the more complicated part
now). I had been thinking about it for a
year or so. I have very bad knees and
the ortho had been nagging me to stop the 8 mile a day power walks. But the ex… the heart breaker who shall not
be named… ever – is an avid cyclist. I
did not, I mean I DID NOT want to run into him on a bike. See, the best place for good cardio in Chicago is the Lakefront - and we all share it. I was seeing him on my daily walks with
irritating regularity. This upset me all
over again every single time. I didn’t
want him to see me on a bike and think it had anything to do with him. All kinds of crap in my head.
So I bought a bike, and it kind of sat around except for the
days I knew could ride without ‘being caught’.
I have several girl friends who ride and rode with one of them a few
times to get the hang of ‘lake front’ riding – it is a little different from
what I did in suburbia as a kid. Then
one day I had a GREAT ride. Down the
lakefront, over the hump at DuSable and felt like a kid, I was HOOKED on the
bike. I felt free, and happy, and alive
in a way I hadn’t in months. Forget
Whatshisname…. I am a biker now!
I started riding to work a couple days a week and felt like a rockstar when I got to the office. After months of only showing up 2 ish days a
week, I was looking for reasons to ride in every single day I could! (rain and
winder >15mph find this girl on the train)
I was all set to ride the North Shore Century – a ¼ of it,
but had real anxiety about an ex run in.
Mercifully, it was super cold and windy so I bailed. That day I realized, outdoor cycling cannot
be my key to physical and or mental wellness, the weather plays too big a
role. But like anyone who used to be an
athlete can relate – once that endorphin rush comes back, you NEED it! So I hauled back to the gym. But I dreaded ‘working out’. Like most women of an age… My weight fluctuates and I am sick and tired of the battle. Then I saw this on pinterest and
seriously, my mind shifted in that single minute.
Yeah… That is what I was missing. I needed to be in training for
something. Not a big bike ride, doctor
advised against a big walk, but a Triathlon… now that scares the crap out of
me. It had been on a bucket list I made
years ago (which I still have the physical copy of) and I just knew I needed to
focus on this. I could swim on crappy
days, ride to work and relearn how to run on good days. Yeah, a lot fewer excuses…
I spent a few days googling training plans, finding people
to follow on blogs and twitter, created my own plan and I am off and running –
and swimming, and biking, and core training and strength training J
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