I turned 39 this year, and next year I’ll be racing in the 40-45 age category; since triathlon rules will be deeming me a 40 year-old, I thought I might give myself a 40th birthday present and sign-up for a half-Ironman. You know, take things to the next level. In triathlon training though, you always need the support of your partner, and when the training volume increases and longer runs/rides start cropping up, this is even more true, so I approached my wife with the idea.
She is supportive, especially when she knows it’s something I really want, but she asked me a straightforward question: With the way things are with the kids, do you see yourself being able to train for a half-Ironman in the coming year. That stopped me in my tracks. That past week, the kids had been sleeping well, and showing a lot of development so I think I had projected that into less dependence on me as their parent, and got all caught up in my own ambition. You see, my wife knows me better than most, and she’s seen me get disappointed before; I don’t always take things in stride, and tend to blame myself in a somewhat destructive pattern. Goals are important, but the best goals are realistic and measurable and all that, so some good straight-talk is worth a million ‘rah-rah! you can do it!’s. Still when presented with an either-or ultimatum, the Iron Rogue way is to take a third option.
So many of my favourite bloggers (including, but not limited to Fit2Flex, Healthy Tipping Point, Fit Mom...In Training) have been training for or completing half-marathons that I couldn’t help but catch that fever. I figured (and my wife agrees) that stepping up my running endurance would be a good pilot project to see what our life can handle in terms of training volume. When I saw that Fitness Cheerleader was signing up for the Burlington Chilly Half-Marathon, I had my inspiration - I signed up! I’ve already gone on some longer (for me) runs with the Lightning Kid in the Chariot, and I hope to increase running volume all the way to Christmas.
After that, I’ll need to adopt (at least semi-formally) a training program; I’d prefer one that is heavy on the cross-training which not only aids my triathlon ambitions, but fits my ‘Fitness ADHD’ personality... which also has me interested in trying new classes and programs for increased strength. Overall, it’s an exciting time, a season to look to new horizons; I don’t see any reason to wait until the new year. Stay tuned to the blog for new adventures....
Epilogue: Since having that conversation with my wife, we’ve gone through several nights of less than 3 hours sleep due to the Lightning Kid’s teething (not to mention when Shark Boy wakes up too), as well as a daytime visit to the Hospital for Sick Children minor surgery to put tubes in his ears. I think I have a pulled core muscle of some kind and an eye infection, and there seems to be an inordinate amount of coughing and sniffling going on in the Iron Rogue Den of Iniquity household. The chaotic elements in our lives reared their heads again, and the decision to make smaller, subtler changes to my training regimen appears to have been the right one.
Labels: family, motivation, running, triathlon
