One Break Coming Up

“The best of all medicines is resting and fasting” Benjamin Franklin

Wow! I woke up this morning feeling tired and burned out. I really didn't see it coming. I felt fine when I went to bed, but I dreamt all night about sleeping in an airplane seat and when I woke up I just felt like pulling the covers over my head and hiding out for the day. Of course, I didn't do it, I got up at my usual time and got moving. But more than once this morning I have asked myself; "What's the point?"

This confession may surprise some of you. After all, I am known for my high levels of energy. Nevertheless, it is true. I didn't want to exercise, but I did it. As I was swimming, I just wanted to quit at every lap but I kept going. 

I have spent nearly an hour this morning thinking about what I would write today. Nothing came. I was distracted by the the chime of email and allowed myself to engage in all kinds of creative avoidance this morning. I couldn't think of what to write today and thought strongly about not writing at all. The thought kept coming to me, "what will it matter?" The only argument that I could come up with is that it will matter to me, because I made a commitment to write every business day and today is a business day.

Transition Periods

While in the pool, I began to think about my training schedule. I am exercising between two to four hours a day right now in order to get ready for several triathlons. My next event is April 4th so I am in one of the heaviest training times for me right now. I am running about 30 Miles a week, riding about 75 Miles a week and swimming 2 to 3 miles a week. In addition to that I am doing P90X. It is a lot of physical exertion and though I feel good, it takes its toll. 

Each of these events are so unique and require me to use different parts of my body. I am adjusted to the schedule, but I still experience sore muscles. At the end of a swim, ride or run I am tired. In a triathlon, I do all of these events back to back. On April 4th, I will start off by swimming 1.2 miles, then I will bike 56 miles, and finally I will run 13.1 Miles. It will be a fun day. I very rarely do any of those activities back to back on a training day. I have come to view race day as a day of fun. All of the work I have done comes together and the pay off is that I can do more than I would normally do because I am in shape.

There are two magic moments in a triathlon. Those moments are called T1 and T2. The "T" stands for transition. The first transition is in between the swim and the bike. It is when I remove my swim gear and put on my bike clothes. The second transition is between the bike and the run. It is during that time that I change from biking gear to running gear. These two moments are timed. A triathlete gets an overall time and then split times for the Swim, T1, Bike, T2 and Run. 

Those that are real serious about their time actually practice changing from swim gear to bike gear and bike gear to run gear. Some hardly change clothes at all. For them, transition time is part of the race and they are racing to get through it as fast as they can.

For me, transition time is a time to briefly recover from either the swim or the bike. It is also a time to change my focus from one discipline to the next. It is a resting period. I don't hurry through it. I just take my time, making sure that I am ready before I go on to the next event.

Back To Real LIfe

I realized this morning that I am in definite need of a transition period. There are so many stressors along the way right now that I just need to take a break and collect my wits. I need to take a breather and recover from the pace I have maintained to this point. I need to pause and consider what is required for the next phase of my race. In a triathlon, these tiny breaks are built into the format of the race. I see the importance of it, but I have a difficult time setting up life in the same way. I sometimes forget to take the breaks I need because I feel like if I do, I will fall behind. 

Today I remembered that I am only racing to finish and not to set a world record time. It won't matter if I rest and blow off a few normal activities or show up late to some of them. What does matter is my ability to stay engaged. Sometimes engagement requires a few moments of disengagement. So I am going to rest and enjoy some reflective moments. It is time to sharpen the saw. I am going home for lunch and I may not come back.

What Do You Do?

Does what I am saying makes sense to you? What do you do when you find yourself at the brink of break down? Are you alert enough to notice the signs before you actually bonk? (that's a triathlon and marathon word that means you can no longer go on) What do you do in your down time to recover faster? 

I am looking forward to hearing your thoughts. I am sure they will inspire me as always. In the meantime I will be here resting.

See you when I get out of transition!

Andrew Thorn

760-559-3548

Comments

[Mary Ryan, Realtor, ABR, e-Pro]

Hi Andrew,

What a great post. You made me feel very tired after reading how many miles you bike and run!
And I love "creative avoidance". I practice that several times a day!

[Andrew]

Thanks Mary - I love creative avoidance too. It actually worked in my favor today as I have received more comments on my post today than any other I have ever written.

Andrew