On My Way

Oh, training.

How I do love you and fear you, all at the same time.

When I was getting ready for bed last night, I looked at what my bike workout was for this morning, as was a tad surprised to see it was a 1:45 ride.

Now, I know to most of you, that's so short it may not even be worth doing. But to me, it would be my longest yet. Pair that with the upcoming training plans I just received from my coach (which includes a 2:15 bike and 1:30 run), and I got a little scared. Kinda like Kate Bosworth in Blue Crush, when she almost dies surfing, then can't get back into the water, even though she knows she has the ability. And she ends up mentally talking herself out of it most of the time.

Of course, I am not Kate Bosworth (I'm taller, thicker, have brown hair, and no coke problem), and surfing is not within the realm of things I know how to do, but you get the picture.

So I got on the bike today kinda freaked out. But guess what?

Yeah, I was fine. And I still am, sitting here a couple hours later. I managed to even take a shower and lean over for the soap without pain. Now THAT is an accomplishment oft taken for granted.

With each new completed workout, I am seeing my body start to snap back into shape. The muscles in my legs and shoulders are coming back. The ability to run for more than 30 minutes without gasping is coming back. And my tolerance for sitting on a trainer for longer than 30 minutes without crippling myself is coming back. And I have not talked myself out of a single swim thus far. P.R.O.G.R.E.S.S.

All of this is to say that IM Arizona is coming into view. I have been asked by and talked to my family, friends, and Blogger friends about sharing a house down there (rented or borrowed - we're not sure yet), looking into flights, and research new training clothes for the winter training and the race. I even managed to watch the Versus broadcast of the '07 race I had Tivo'd while on the trainer today, and without crying. Though this may be getting ahead of myself just yet, it keeps it real for me. So yay.

As I mentioned a couple posts ago, I have written a longer version on the training/health/life update, but am still hesitant to post it, almost like not wanting to get TOO excited too early. So I will keep on doing the smaller workouts, and post when I feel more secure about the health of my back.

That's all I got, boys and girls.