I guess I should rewind a little further. Last Sunday we talked about and wrote down our 2012 goals. I had really been thinking about the process for more than a month. Right around Thanksgiving time, I started writing down little notes here and there about different things I needed to work on/change/improve or wanted to accomplish in 2012 (i.e. "I WILL do a Triathlon!" "STOP YELLING! :(" "Love Dare" "Ugh, back to basics... Zero-Based budget is coming back." etc.) So, going into January 1st, 2012, I was feeling extremely prepared and confident that I knew what I wanted to accomplish. 2012 Fitness Goals
Feeling really good (and oddly confident) about my goals, I handed Brad the computer and asked him to look over them as he is dubbed my accountability partner for many of them. His response? "Babe, this is a LOT!" My reaction; "What!? A lot? No it's not!!" So, in typical Brad fashion, he handed it back to me and said "Well good job. These are aggressive goals. Are you ready to commit?" Of course, this sparked a fairly one-sided conversation (me speaking to Brad) about how it's all very do-able and I just have to commit, I have a plan, blah blah blah. Brad is one of the most supportive people I know. He may not always be the one who will push me to dream bigger, but he is always there to tell me to suck it up and keep going, remind me how strong I am, ask me what I need from him in order to do said task, etc. I am extremely thankful for his level-head and commit to support me.
I could go on for pages about the challenges, thoughts, victories, etc that I've felt this week so I am going to narrow it down to 3 goals. If I had to rank the top three goals that I set for 2012 in order of importance to me, they would be;
1. Having patience with my boys, using a calm voice as I discipline (I yell entirely too much.) Picking my battles wisely and following through with consequences.
1. Having patience with my boys, using a calm voice as I discipline (I yell entirely too much.) Picking my battles wisely and following through with consequences.
2. Getting back to the basics with our budget with the zero-based budget.
3. Train for and complete my first triathlon. Woman of Steel Triathlon 2012
Good news is I can say I've taken steps in the right direction in all of these areas.
-Brad and I spent a couple hours Friday evening re-visiting our budget, and moved forward on the same page and with a plan. We even got through the "budget meeting" with no yelling and no fighting :) Of course the conversation got heated a few times, but I can say we didn't yell, point fingers or even really "argue." SUCCESS :)
-Though a daily challenge, I feel that every day I have little victories with how I speak to/with and discipline the boys. I already see a difference in Carson. He yells back WAY too much. Unfortunately I know this is a direct response and learned behavior from his mother (ugh, that's me!) So I know that as I improve in this area, he will also.
-I got back in the pool on Thursday for the first time in 3 weeks. While I was rudely reminded how difficult swimming is, I was actually a little surprised at how much I hadn't forgotten.
-I ran outside for the first time since August (when I injured my back.) It was also the longest run since the injury. 5 miles and I felt great! No pain!
HOWEVER in all of these areas, I have already seen (what feels like) many challenges... and that is really what this blog post is all about. Not the challenges themselves, but what I've learned (and been reminded of) through them. I've been telling myself for at least 6 months now, that I have to stop racing to some supposed destination and start enjoying and learning from the journey. This picture is currently my profile picture on facebook and the wallpaper on my iPhone.
When I saw this picture I felt like it was made just for me. I have a deep-rooted desire to be my absolute best in every area of life. And yet I seem to fail so often (many times, epically.) I am a complete perfectionist and am extremely hard on myself. A weakness I struggle with is being able to break down the overall objective in to bite sized pieces instead of looking at the end goal and wanting to just be there... NOW. This therefore typically results in either;
a. Starting strong but not finishing
b. Getting overwhelmed and doing things "half ass"
c. Losing focus
So... the key words in this picture are ONE. STEP. AT. A. TIME. It's ok to desire and strive to be your best. However I am learning that my "best" is not and never will be "perfection." More importantly, I'm learning to be ok with that.
Brad and I were sitting in the hot tub at the gym Thursday night, he was nursing a hip/psoas injury and I was procrastinating getting in to the lap pool. The conversation turned toward the Buffalo Run 25K that is on both of our list of goals for 2012. 25K = 15.6 miles = the furthest either of us has ever run. The longest race I have ever run is a half marathon (13.1 miles) and the longest Brad has ever run was a very tough 8 mile Ragnar leg. 14 months ago, when Brad was having his check up after his 4th (yes, I said 4th) knee surgery, his Doctor told him he should really consider biking or swimming in place of running and football. Brad quickly told him that wasn't going to happen so his Dr. said he should limit his running to 9 miles per week then. He suggested 3 miles, 3 times per week. Last year, the year after his last surgery, Brad ran his first 5K, a very difficult Draper Trail Challenge and 3 Ragnars. Getting tired of feeling like "the one that had bad knees and always had the easy Ragnar legs", he decided to choose a really challenging leg for the Napa Valley Ragnar and OWNED it. He learned very quickly that he can't train like most people. His knees simply would not last if he followed the intensity of a traditional training schedule. So he has had to figure out the balance of training enough but not too much. Last Saturday, we went out for a run (5 miles) and Brad found himself having to stop a few times. We were talking about this in the hot tub and Brad said something that will always stick with me. He said "When I feel like I want to stop, I run through a checklist in my head. Do I want to stop because my knees hurt? Do I want to stop because my hip hurts? Yes? Then stop. It's ok to stop and walk for a moment. No? Then keep going. Do I want to stop because I am sucking wind and I'm tired? Yes? Then keep going!" As athletes, we all have those moments we have to stop listening to our whining body and start listening to our hearts so we can dig down deep and push past barriers. This is how we accomplish great things. However, as we have been learning together this past year, you also have to learn how to listen to your body and know when it is saying STOP, you are going to injure something rather than just STOP, I'm tired. I personally really had to learn this with my back. I have a bulging L5 disc and the only real way to know when the bulge has subsided is to go back and get another MRI. Well, that's not going to happen. So I have to learn to listen to my body and decipher what it is telling me.
After our conversation, I got in the pool and swam 12 laps (25 meters each = 300 meters total = a sprint triathlon distance for the swim). I was again, faced with what feels like an unbreakable brick wall... 50 meters. I have yet to go longer than 50 meters (2 laps) with out having to stop for several seconds. I am completely out of breath after 50 meters. I can physically swim 300 meters. The question is how long is it going to take me? I can't stop every lap while competing a triathlon! I must commit more time to training in the pool! So this brought up the real question; how do I make time for everything? I refuse to give up lifting as I believe it is so important in maintaining my weight and staying strong. I also have to devote time to running and cycling. Currently, I work out 6 days/week - 3 cardio days and 3 strength days. In talking with a few triathletes, they all suggest you swim at minimum 3 days/wk. How do I break up the cardio between the swimming, cycling and running and still get my strength days in? I feel confident enough in my ability to run a 5K with out devoting a lot of training time in running. However, if I want to do the Buffalo run, I will have to ramp up my miles each week significantly. These thoughts were filling my head as I was swimming my laps. I just found myself feeling overwhelmed with the task ahead. The next day, Brad and I wrote out our training schedule. Planned out which days we would run or go to the gym together, etc. I found a Masters swim class to do with a friend. I had to take a step back and ask myself what I wanted more; the Buffalo Run or the Triathlon? Well, it's a no brainer, really. I am extremely excited to do a triathlon. I can not wait for the feeling of accomplishment I will have after facing this challenge. The only reason I want to do the Buffalo Run is because I think it would be such a great experience for Brad and I to do it together. Don't get me wrong, it will be a great challenge to, but it's just not as important or exciting to me as the task of training for and completely my first triathlon.
I feel like through this week and the challenges that are in front of me, I have been reminded of two very important lessons;
1. You must have a plan... a written plan!
2. It's better to do one thing really well than many things with mediocrity.
Though nothing had actually changed, I suddenly felt much better about the tasks at hand once I had a plan of attack. I wasn't stressing about how to get my works outs in.
I also had to decide to be ok with taking the Buffalo run off my goal list to make room for the Triathlon, which for me is the higher priority. This will allow me to devote more time to swimming and less time to running with out sacrificing performance on race day.
I think this is so true in all areas of life. We overcommit ourselves and end up sacrificing quality for quantity. Don't do it.
Remember how far you have come, rather than how far you have to go!
After our conversation, I got in the pool and swam 12 laps (25 meters each = 300 meters total = a sprint triathlon distance for the swim). I was again, faced with what feels like an unbreakable brick wall... 50 meters. I have yet to go longer than 50 meters (2 laps) with out having to stop for several seconds. I am completely out of breath after 50 meters. I can physically swim 300 meters. The question is how long is it going to take me? I can't stop every lap while competing a triathlon! I must commit more time to training in the pool! So this brought up the real question; how do I make time for everything? I refuse to give up lifting as I believe it is so important in maintaining my weight and staying strong. I also have to devote time to running and cycling. Currently, I work out 6 days/week - 3 cardio days and 3 strength days. In talking with a few triathletes, they all suggest you swim at minimum 3 days/wk. How do I break up the cardio between the swimming, cycling and running and still get my strength days in? I feel confident enough in my ability to run a 5K with out devoting a lot of training time in running. However, if I want to do the Buffalo run, I will have to ramp up my miles each week significantly. These thoughts were filling my head as I was swimming my laps. I just found myself feeling overwhelmed with the task ahead. The next day, Brad and I wrote out our training schedule. Planned out which days we would run or go to the gym together, etc. I found a Masters swim class to do with a friend. I had to take a step back and ask myself what I wanted more; the Buffalo Run or the Triathlon? Well, it's a no brainer, really. I am extremely excited to do a triathlon. I can not wait for the feeling of accomplishment I will have after facing this challenge. The only reason I want to do the Buffalo Run is because I think it would be such a great experience for Brad and I to do it together. Don't get me wrong, it will be a great challenge to, but it's just not as important or exciting to me as the task of training for and completely my first triathlon.
I feel like through this week and the challenges that are in front of me, I have been reminded of two very important lessons;
1. You must have a plan... a written plan!
2. It's better to do one thing really well than many things with mediocrity.
Though nothing had actually changed, I suddenly felt much better about the tasks at hand once I had a plan of attack. I wasn't stressing about how to get my works outs in.
I also had to decide to be ok with taking the Buffalo run off my goal list to make room for the Triathlon, which for me is the higher priority. This will allow me to devote more time to swimming and less time to running with out sacrificing performance on race day.
I think this is so true in all areas of life. We overcommit ourselves and end up sacrificing quality for quantity. Don't do it.
Remember how far you have come, rather than how far you have to go!
No comments:
Post a Comment