This morning I got on my mountain bike around 7 am and rode to the Moosic City Dairy Dash to run a 10K. It’s a nice little race. Very flat, fast and they feed you ice cream with pasta. This was my first 10K (last year) and it’s pretty amazing to think that, in essence, I treated it as part of a training day.
I hate to harp on this, but I’m nearly 50 and just started running last year. It hasn’t been easy and I have been putting in a ton of effort, but the difference you can make in a year is quite astonishing.
I was actually pretty proud of my time last year, 54 minutes and change, but it was unbelievably difficult. I was seriously close to fainting around mile 5 and somehow sucked it up to finish.
I’m not even sure how to quantify this progress in training, but I think the best evidence is how I felt hammering home on a heavy bike after running hard in that race. And now, I sit here writing, when last year I was already in bed taking a nap. There is just no denying I am, at the least, giving myself the opportunity to get more out of life.
The consistency in moods, the follow through on projects, the overall energy level. All of these are directly tied to what I would consider a marginally insane workout plan.
A lot of the time it’s difficult to see progress. It’s like wiring electrical in a new house. You know stuff is happening, but you don’t really notice results until the lights come on. Today another light came on. I think it was in the basement, but it gave me another jolt of confidence that will push me one step closer to, not only the Ironman goal, but the person I know I want to be more often.
There is no substitute for being strong in mind and body. Clear about who you are and what you want. Comfortable in your own skin and decisions. It doesn’t happen overnight, but it happens . . . if you work it.