One of the biggest challenges we all face when it comes to training is simply finding the time to do it. "I don't have time" used to be a very convienient excuse for me, and that was precisely what it was - an excuse. Now, if I don't get a run in, I find that I get edgy and frustrated that I'm slipping.
The demands of our hectic lives can at times put a squeeze on fitness, and there are still plenty of moments when I'm not able to train as much as I would like to. This is where prioritizing comes into play. Marathons, Taekwondo, and now Triathlons all require commitment and a consistent training schedule in order to not only maintain performance levels but to keep making positive gains forward - not to mention the psychological edge proper training can give you when the going gets rough. There are moments in a race, usually from mile 18+ and beyond, when fatigue comes knocking and I can find solace and strength in the fact that I put in the miles, did the work, and falling back upon your training is a very calming thing.
My Taekwondo teacher is an 8th Dan Black Belt and always seems to have the right answer. With regard to time management, he has stated the simple fact that everyone has the same 24 hours to work with, and sometimes we need to "rotate the clock" in order to make time for what is important to us.
Rotate the clock. I like that. I interpret that as instead of starting my day at 6am, get my tail out of bed and begin it at 5 - or for that matter, getting in that evening workout after the kids go to bed. A 50 minute pre-dawn run is always, always better than no run.
I think about someone like Manny Pacquiao. He's a Congressman in the Philippines, TV personality, humanitarian, recording 'artist' (term used loosely), basically a Filipino national treasure - and oh yeah, perhaps the best pound-for-pound fighter in the history of boxing.
Despite all of his other outside interests (or according to famed trainer Freddy Roach "hobbies") he trains like a madman and stepped into the ring in phenomenal shape and absolutely dismantled 'Sugar' Shane Moseley - then had the energy to put on a 2 hour concert immediately following the fight. He rotates the clock, no doubt.
On the running front, Quebec City (marathon #10) is ten days away. I had planned at least one 20 mile training run in between marathons 9 and 10, but the longest I managed was a 16 miler a few weeks back. My running base is pretty solid overall, so I'll continue to do short, quick runs as I begin my taper. I've been hammering out 7 and 8 milers lately with decent pace (around 8:00/mi) so my speed is coming back. The hills of the Mad Marathon took their expected toll with regard to recovery, but when I was in Connecticut I did a lot of hill work (in some serious heat/humidity) and I felt good. Running hills is an investment that always pays dividends.
So my running is more or less about where it should be going into another 26.2. What is not where it should be (to be fair, more like where I'd like it to be) is my swimming. I signed up for the Wallis Sands Triathlon which is on September 18th - and quite honestly I don't know if I will be ready for the swim portion. I'm really struggling with my pool work right now.
Over the past few weeks I have learned that endurance running does not translate to endurance swimming. Not by a long shot. They are two entirely different disciplines, and I greatly underestimated how poor a swimmer I really am.
Without proper freestyle technique, I have found that I tire very quickly because I am so inefficient in the water. 20 laps is 500m (the distance I will need to cover) and I still have to take frequent breaks, as if my VO2max has been neutralized and rendered irrelevant. I don't feel comfortable with rotary breathing yet so I swim with my head/upper torso raised, and that creates a less than aerodynamic glide (drag) through the water. Factor in the rough chop of the waves - not to mention the anxiety - of an open water ocean swim, and my confidence is pretty low. Not only do I not have a swimming background, I never had swim lessons at any level, just basically learned to swim on my own as a kid - and it shows. I desperately need some stroke lessons, which are starting in a few days.
For many triathletes, the swim is the hardest part and something they downright loathe. Restaurateur-turned Kona hopeful Joe Bastianich said in the most recent issue of LAVA Magazine, that "the whole swimming thing is just the bane of my existence."
I don't feel that way. Ironically, despite my recent struggles in the pool, I really do enjoy it. I suppose I'm fortunate, as many don't. I acknowledge that my swim is a weak point simply because I haven't done much of it, but I want to become a strong swimmer. It is always frustrating when you're not as good at something as you might like to be.
A big part of endurance sports is respecting the distance, and this is a perfect example - even if it is only a 1/3 mile swim. I know I will get there, but also have to be very realistic with my capabilities. It will take time, and lots and lots of laps. The only way to improve your swimming is to swim. I'm working on it.
My swim difficulties aside, what is going well these days is Taekwondo. I make a point to attend twice a week, and each 70 minute class is a serious workout. Martial arts is the ideal cross-training counterbalance to running, and like so many things in life, the more you put into it the more you get out of it. I feel that many of the advanced kicks I was having trouble with at the beginning of the summer are quicker and much more fluid now. I also sense that I'm getting better at sparring, and able to put together multiple kick combinations that utilize a degree of deception and then actually hit the target. That is brand new, and a good feeling.
My goal back in January 2010 was to test for my Red belt in December, so I have four months to train and prepare. Again, nothing is certain and I may not be ready - but one area I will not compromise is my Taekwondo training. In fact, when my 12 marathon challenge is complete on October 2nd, my plan is to then start attending the Saturday morning class. An additional Taekwondo class per week should make a big difference.