Mind and Body Re-Unite!

It took me two days, but I think my head finally made it home from Texas, along with the rest of my body.  But it cost me a day of work to do it.  I stayed home today as I was utter trash when I awoke this morning. In fact, I slept straight through 10:15 a.m. and could have kept sleeping had it not been for the massive rumbling in my stomach.  After all, I dropped three pounds of water weight overnight!  I went to sleep at 137 pounds and awoke at 134.  No joke. Most of my day was spent in a hazy, exhausted fog. All I wanted to do was sleep. I felt like Ryan in Wonderland. Up was down, right was left.  I just didn't feel like my normal self.  Lethargic, to say the least.  And, for the third day in a row, I didn't train.  I just couldn't do it.  No energy.  No desire.

Tonight though, I had to drop my monthly coaching fee check off to Coach Gerardo. Normally, I'd give it to him right before jumping in the water for my Tuesday swim.  Instead, I was observing the team from above the deck.  At first, I was afraid that I had ZERO desire to be in the water with them.  But, in talking with Gerardo, he said what I was going through is normal -- especially for someone training for his second Ironman within a year.  "This is why I told you not to do two Ironmans in one year!" he said.

Hindsight is a bitch.

Gerardo added that I haven't lost any speed or fitness in the past couple days and to simply reset mentally.  Don't dwell on the lost workouts, or trying to make them up.  They're gone.  And it's not a big deal.  Focus on the workouts at hand.  Start from zero mentally.

I can do that.

By the time I was done chatting with Gerardo, I was smiling and starting to feel like my old self again.  By the time I got home, I was listening to the Rocky soundtrack, "Going the Distance," and ready to jump back into the ring again.

Tonight was one of those moments where having a coach really paid off.  Yes, it may cost a lot less to train on your own.  But when you run into mental obstacles like the one I faced the past few days, it's invaluable to have someone you trust tell you it's gonna be OK and adjust your workout schedule accordingly.

Thanks Coach.  I needed that.

Back on the bike tomorrow.  I'm back.

Let's do this!

98 days and counting.