Some Inspiration
The kids’ basketball seasons and holiday parties have dominated my free time the last couple of weeks. Blog writing has had to take a back seat! So tonight you get the equivalent of a teacher substituting a National Geographic documentary for classroom education.
I just received a good inspirational e-mail from Coach Patrick McCrann. Here are some excerpts for other athletes seeking some early winter motivation or for non-athletes wondering what we do in our “off” season…
“…Part of what makes the sport of triathlon so alluring - and challenging - is the concept of delayed gratification. You don't go race every weekend like a roadie or a runner...you train for weeks or months to peak for a single event. So in many ways it's not the event that should be your focus...your focus should be on your daily training. If a journey begins with a single step, then your triathlon journey begins - every day - with a single workout. Completing these little steps will put you very close to the top of the mountain. The final push will be reserved for race day. Think about eliminating the "zero" days when you miss a workout and you'll be that much closer to your race day goal.”
“For me, the most exciting part is the unknown. If I have learned anything in 5+ years of coaching, it's that you can't plan for everything. Some of you will get injured, some will get sick, some will get lost on long rides, most of us will bonk, bounce back, and learn to fuel better next time. These detours, even though they are unplanned, are a huge part of our journey...and should be embraced just as the "perfect" workouts are. A significant part of pushing our personal boundaries and limits is about being on the edge. On the edge of fatigue, at the edge of our knowledge of local roads, beyond the edge of what our bodies can do without some food. This, people, is the whole point!!! Athletes who wait for a transcendent experience on race day will more than likely finish wishing they had an "out of body" experience to avoid the suffering. Live in the daily miracle of being able to train and race and you, like countless others before you, will realize that the journey itself is the adventure, not the destination.”
Seems to me a lot of these themes could apply to far more than triathlon. Have a peaceful week.
I just received a good inspirational e-mail from Coach Patrick McCrann. Here are some excerpts for other athletes seeking some early winter motivation or for non-athletes wondering what we do in our “off” season…
“…Part of what makes the sport of triathlon so alluring - and challenging - is the concept of delayed gratification. You don't go race every weekend like a roadie or a runner...you train for weeks or months to peak for a single event. So in many ways it's not the event that should be your focus...your focus should be on your daily training. If a journey begins with a single step, then your triathlon journey begins - every day - with a single workout. Completing these little steps will put you very close to the top of the mountain. The final push will be reserved for race day. Think about eliminating the "zero" days when you miss a workout and you'll be that much closer to your race day goal.”
“For me, the most exciting part is the unknown. If I have learned anything in 5+ years of coaching, it's that you can't plan for everything. Some of you will get injured, some will get sick, some will get lost on long rides, most of us will bonk, bounce back, and learn to fuel better next time. These detours, even though they are unplanned, are a huge part of our journey...and should be embraced just as the "perfect" workouts are. A significant part of pushing our personal boundaries and limits is about being on the edge. On the edge of fatigue, at the edge of our knowledge of local roads, beyond the edge of what our bodies can do without some food. This, people, is the whole point!!! Athletes who wait for a transcendent experience on race day will more than likely finish wishing they had an "out of body" experience to avoid the suffering. Live in the daily miracle of being able to train and race and you, like countless others before you, will realize that the journey itself is the adventure, not the destination.”
Seems to me a lot of these themes could apply to far more than triathlon. Have a peaceful week.
posted by dan kerr at 8:18 PM
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