WEEK 3 UPDATE

Week three's theme seemed to be rain, rain, and more rain.

I would like to think I have the patience and thickness of skin to train in inclement weather, but this past week was a big challenge for me.

It was cold, wet and had some scattered thunderstorms. All very unusual things for California. We get rain, but it is often only for a few days and never really that hard. Throughout the week, we had very hard rain, high winds, fallen trees, hail, and low temperatures (for California).

As much as I would like to say I trained through it all, I didn't.

I was, however, able to get two good days of running and two solid days of cycling in. I did not swim at all given the weather and my lack of a stronger constitution.

The highlight of the week was riding 42 tough miles on Saturday, which included hill repeats out at Silver Creek in San Jose. It is a 6 mile loop that has a lengthy initial climb, a fast decent and turn around then a short intense climb and a longish descent back to the start.

My coach, Muddy Waters, organizes and oversees his group of athletes almost every Saturday. The ride consists of a 13 mile warm up on mostly flat roads then as many hill repeats as you can do before returning on the same road back (or lengthening it if your training schedule requires).

It was the first "real" ride of the year and I was cooked after only two loops. Muddy shut me down (thank you, Muddy) and told me to head home. The tough part is that the rest of the group completed either 3 or 4 repeats, but the reality is that I didn't have much left after two. I will be riding Silver Creek most weekends moving forward and plan to increase my count as the season unfolds.

Sunday's long run was a challenge, but I managed to run for 90 good minutes. Weather was cooperative and the Los Gatos Creek Trail was busy with runners and walkers. It's a great path to run on and offers good climbing one way and a flatter run the other.

My legs were cooked from Saturday's hill repeats, but it was good to have two challenging days back to back.

There really is nothing like finishing my Sunday long run and having the rest of the day to relax and recover (most Sundays). Although my week's training was not as full as I would have liked, I did have quality workouts when I trained.

I try to keep weeks like this past one in perspective, but it is a fine line between being overly compulsive and guilt ridden and too disconnected to be focused enough. I teeter on both sides but try to keep a healthy perspective.

The old me would have chastised myself relentlessly for missing a workout, for not having the commitment to push through the bad weather, but I know that I have to forgive myself sometimes and to honor the other areas of my life that have great importance as well: family, work, my mental and emotional health among them.

I also know that, at times, I can be too easy on myself, that I can talk myself out of training with the idea that I can train the next day. It's something that I have to continually manage and also to remember that, really, there is no tomorrow. Nothing is really guaranteed.

This is the great thing about sport and especially triathlons. When treated with respect and sensitivity, the challenge really has to do with balance, life management and constant inner dialogue about healthy choices and, I think most importantly, forgiveness and treating yourself with kindness. It's also about the hard work, the elevated heart rate, and the feeling of sore muscles.

Nothing is like it. Nothing.

PS Update on my weight and body composition: There really is not change as of yet. I am hovering at 197 lbs and 33% body fat. I have been eating very well and really focusing on portion sizes. I feel a great difference overall. My commitment to "push away" from the table has been very empowering. My long term weight goals will begin to show themselves as my training increases. The small changes I have made in my choices have been tremendous and has created a new awareness of control that I had forgotten about. I am feeling good about that.

2ND WEEK UPDATE

I'm glad the season is a long one and that I am starting early in my build up. I have Wildflower Long Course on May 1st as my first A race of the year.

My 2nd week of focused training turned into a greater challenge of balancing work and health. I was focused on a presentation during Sunday and Monday of last week and had to work into the early morning hours.

The presentation was a sort of "State of Sereno Group" looking at where our company has come from and looking forward to our goals ahead. It was also a reminder that our company culture is one of our most important gifts and that everyone at Sereno Group needs to work to protect and nurture it.

The presentation to the Los Gatos and Saratoga agents went well. And I am glad I worked as hard as I did, but the by-product of that effort gave me a cold that I have been trying to shake since Tuesday.

I wasn't even close to 100% all week and really did not want to train while fighting a cold. I worked hard at my Wednesday turbo training class and ran 50 minutes on Thursday, but I didn't feel at all good and shut it down.

The week was a positive one in other aspects of my life. Vibe was great at work and the presentation really set up the rest of 2010 for everyone. We have a good picture of what we need to do moving forward as an organization.

Training wise, the week was a wash, but I am not going to trip too much on it. The season is a long one with many good days and many not so good days. I have to be mindful enough to let go of the not so good and focus on the good.

This is not something I can easily do, but I have worked hard not to get my mind on the treadmill of guilt. The biggest challenge with triathlon, I think, is not getting faster, but the balance that one has to maintain in order to create success in all facets of life.

This was something I had to learn the hard way, but it is a lesson well learned and understood for me.

I was okay with my food choices this week, but I did indulge on a few fries. I picked off of my wife's plate and they weren't as good as I thought they would be. The week of inactivity probably did not do me any favors, but I am still in good spirits and excited to be where I am.

I am still fighting the cold, but I hope to get back to training by tomorrow. I am writing this post while mobile and do not have access to my scale. I will update the numbers later.

Happy living.