I Hope You Don't Think I'm Crazy, But I Do...

One of my favorite things about racing and training for Ironman distance races is that I can finish my race descritpion with

and then I run a marathon

It is at this point that many people give me that, you are insane look.  They can understand swimming for 2.4 miles, think a bike ride over 100 miles is crazy but to then run?

It is at this point that most triathletes start the delicate dance of trying to appear sane and yet not make our feat look too easy.

If someone starts to google local psychiatrists or addiction couselors I typically start sharing these points:

• Over 3000 other people are doing this race
• 80 year old nuns can do it.
• A bunch of biggest looser contestants have done it
• It is all about pacing and just a long day of exercise

No, if they swing too far and start relating to me by comparing it to there last 5K walk/run, I start trying to amp things up a bit more:

• Describe in detail the mass swim start using the "swim over" as many times as possible
• Talk about bloody nipples
•  Lead them to believe I need to train about 18 - 56 hours per week
• Talk about how winners pee themselves

So in the end, I don't want them to think I'm crazy, well maybe crazy but impressive crazy.

How do you keep things in balance?

"I told my brain"

My four year olds are taking survival swim lessons and it has been awesome to watch them face their fear.

C fell in the lake a few weeks and didn't even make a splash. She had a life jacket on and things worked out fine but we had two problems. A four year old that was convinced she could swim and the discovery that she doesn't scream, splash and panic when she falls in ice cold water.

We enrolled them in swimbabes which is a survival class (10 session) focused on teaching not breathing water, floating, and moving into the water.

During the second lesson, C got her blue ribbon for jumping in on her own, turning on her back and floating for 10 seconds - three times. The ribbon comes with a picture of her floating, a certificate, water slide privileges and the rare ability to have something her sister doesn't have.

K spent most of the weekend getting her plan in place so that she could get a ribbon. The only problem is that she doesn't like water in her face and her float couldn't make the count. She did have a plan and through sheer will, she got her blue ribbon on Monday.

By the next class, she was kick boarding with her head under water from one side of the pool to the other. She told my wife what she did to learn how to swim

"I told my brain 'you can do it', and I did it"

Wow, what amazing things I can learn from my girls. I now know what I need to do to make it to and through Ironman Canada.

I'm that person

I tend to have a just do it attitude yet this has been one of the lowest years of training motivation for me.  I love to exercise and I feel, think and am generally a nicer person when I am training.  This year's training has been horrible.  I could list off a bunch of reasons (excuses) but I won't bore you with those or allow them to hold be back.

Here is the reality - I have 81 days until Ironman Canada and for this year I have trained for:
Bike - 165 Miles
Run - 103.42 Miles
Swim - 29000 Yards (16.57 Miles)

What this means is that I have barely trained the equivalent of a IM event and it took me 6 months.

This makes me want to quit because I am nowhere near where I intended to be at this point.  However, today I choose to train.

I have 81 days to get to the beach in the best shape possible.  My plan is to be patient, positive and persistent in my training (I love alliteration).  It is hard not to start going crazy and panic training but I can't afford to be injured so my new focus is also a "p" - pacing.

I could also use your encouragement.