A week to cool out!
This past week I decided to take it down. Seemed like a good idea seeing how Arizona's now 10 weeks out. I rolled through some of my early logs from last year and noticed that I had huge gains after a down week and at least 2 days of rest mixed in. Since I haven't had a complete day off in a little over 3 months, I figured maybe some r-n-r was due.
All in all, it was an extremely smart move. I'm more excited to hit the next few weeks and my legs and body couldn't feel better. Even some of the most talented athletes can be idiots when it comes to down time and rest. The push, push, push attitude always seems to over-ride any rationale thoughts we're supposed to have.
When I played golf, I'd occasionally go through a funk period where things didn't click. A handful of chilly-peppers or a half dozen shanks would always let me know when I'd overdone it. When this happened, I always had the smarts to step back, catch a break...maybe some basketball, video games, late night drinkin with the fellas, whatever would take my mind off the sport. Needless to say, when I came back..my mind and my body forgot what it was doing wrong, and positioned itself right back into alignment.
Come to think about it. If I picked up a set of clubs, I'd probably shoot high 70's - low 80's, maybe scratch after a couple weeks worth of practice. I've never been able to shake golf. It was bred into my blood and it's like walking. While it was always a nice talent to have, I could never take it to that next level. Probably because I never stayed consistent with it. I could never hit the numbers I needed in order to succeed. I would have always been a sub par player in the eyes of those that mattered... Reason? I never stayed with it. I never put in the time needed to develop. It's not that I didn't have the talent. There were just so many other things occupying my mind and I definitely wasn't a child "self disciplined" enough to keep on the straight and arrow with golf. Things like skateboarding would come into play, video games, bmx bikes, anything that didn't require practice or any solid structure. I'd bounce in and out of golf like a kid in a candy store. Since my father taught me when I was 4 years old, I never really remember learning....only playing. Like I said, playing was the easy part....staying dedicated enough to get any good....that was another story.
I always tell my buddies who ask about my past days as a golfer that if you want to play with the Pro's, you've got to fire high 60's on a pretty regular basis...at least at your local club. If you can't do that, you'll put up high 80's, maybe 90's on a pro-cut track (course)!
Back to Triathlon and my current life....
I was actually thinking about starting back up today with an 8 hour bike. I know. The day was beautiful and I wanted to take advantage of the nice weather. I've been aching to ride super long for a while now but never taken the opportunity to do so. In the end, I resisted the urge and took another zero today. I wanted to recharge one last time before my final 10 week push to Ironman.
Resisting an urge to push the envelope, go that extra mile or put in that extra hour of training has really been hard this season. It might have to do with the physical changes taking place within my body or possibly the mental. It could be because my desire to do well this year is far stronger than the prior 3 combined. While all these things can be solid assets, they can be great liabilities as well. Needless to say, holding back has definitely taken on a special meaning.
I think most of us struggle at the end of workout's or during sessions while our legs and minds are fresh. At the end of a 90 minute run when were not as tired as we thought....why not push the pace...finish strong. These times always seem to arise when were feeling our best. I seriously doubt people go out when there run down thinking about a 20 min tempo run. These are the pitfalls most athletes make.
The temptation is always there. Since were all various athletes with different goals...there's no one answer to solve the problem....only options. When situations like that arise for me, especially now, I try to think about the next day's workout. I ask myself various questions. Is what your thinking about doing going to impact tomorrow's session. Are you in a base, build or peak phase. For me, I'm in a base building phase.
I've got another long season ahead....with Ironman Arizona in April, and Ironman Florida in November....that pretty much sums up my year. In the end, the answer's always easy for me. If the workout falls into a situation that may affect my week or the next days workout...anything that would break consistent training....it's a wash and a waste of time.
Back to the long ride. Hopefully I can put the final touches on a solid base and role up the final weeks up with some race specific prep. I'll save my workouts over the next couple weeks for my next blog and training log entry. I'm gearing up for some pretty exciting training over the next couple months so I'll make sure and update consistently with various changes.
Until next week....
Mg
All in all, it was an extremely smart move. I'm more excited to hit the next few weeks and my legs and body couldn't feel better. Even some of the most talented athletes can be idiots when it comes to down time and rest. The push, push, push attitude always seems to over-ride any rationale thoughts we're supposed to have.
When I played golf, I'd occasionally go through a funk period where things didn't click. A handful of chilly-peppers or a half dozen shanks would always let me know when I'd overdone it. When this happened, I always had the smarts to step back, catch a break...maybe some basketball, video games, late night drinkin with the fellas, whatever would take my mind off the sport. Needless to say, when I came back..my mind and my body forgot what it was doing wrong, and positioned itself right back into alignment.
Come to think about it. If I picked up a set of clubs, I'd probably shoot high 70's - low 80's, maybe scratch after a couple weeks worth of practice. I've never been able to shake golf. It was bred into my blood and it's like walking. While it was always a nice talent to have, I could never take it to that next level. Probably because I never stayed consistent with it. I could never hit the numbers I needed in order to succeed. I would have always been a sub par player in the eyes of those that mattered... Reason? I never stayed with it. I never put in the time needed to develop. It's not that I didn't have the talent. There were just so many other things occupying my mind and I definitely wasn't a child "self disciplined" enough to keep on the straight and arrow with golf. Things like skateboarding would come into play, video games, bmx bikes, anything that didn't require practice or any solid structure. I'd bounce in and out of golf like a kid in a candy store. Since my father taught me when I was 4 years old, I never really remember learning....only playing. Like I said, playing was the easy part....staying dedicated enough to get any good....that was another story.
I always tell my buddies who ask about my past days as a golfer that if you want to play with the Pro's, you've got to fire high 60's on a pretty regular basis...at least at your local club. If you can't do that, you'll put up high 80's, maybe 90's on a pro-cut track (course)!
Back to Triathlon and my current life....
I was actually thinking about starting back up today with an 8 hour bike. I know. The day was beautiful and I wanted to take advantage of the nice weather. I've been aching to ride super long for a while now but never taken the opportunity to do so. In the end, I resisted the urge and took another zero today. I wanted to recharge one last time before my final 10 week push to Ironman.
Resisting an urge to push the envelope, go that extra mile or put in that extra hour of training has really been hard this season. It might have to do with the physical changes taking place within my body or possibly the mental. It could be because my desire to do well this year is far stronger than the prior 3 combined. While all these things can be solid assets, they can be great liabilities as well. Needless to say, holding back has definitely taken on a special meaning.
I think most of us struggle at the end of workout's or during sessions while our legs and minds are fresh. At the end of a 90 minute run when were not as tired as we thought....why not push the pace...finish strong. These times always seem to arise when were feeling our best. I seriously doubt people go out when there run down thinking about a 20 min tempo run. These are the pitfalls most athletes make.
The temptation is always there. Since were all various athletes with different goals...there's no one answer to solve the problem....only options. When situations like that arise for me, especially now, I try to think about the next day's workout. I ask myself various questions. Is what your thinking about doing going to impact tomorrow's session. Are you in a base, build or peak phase. For me, I'm in a base building phase.
I've got another long season ahead....with Ironman Arizona in April, and Ironman Florida in November....that pretty much sums up my year. In the end, the answer's always easy for me. If the workout falls into a situation that may affect my week or the next days workout...anything that would break consistent training....it's a wash and a waste of time.
Back to the long ride. Hopefully I can put the final touches on a solid base and role up the final weeks up with some race specific prep. I'll save my workouts over the next couple weeks for my next blog and training log entry. I'm gearing up for some pretty exciting training over the next couple months so I'll make sure and update consistently with various changes.
Until next week....
Mg
posted by Mark Gingrich at 9:28 PM
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