Overcomers

Yah! There's so much I want to do and say with this blog, but so many times I start a post and get stuck halfway through . . .

This kind of thing shouldn't be happening so consistently to an English major. Seriously. I was trained (hah!) to do this.

So some quick updates . . .

• I'm still working on the beginners' series; I'm just trying to decide between two topics for the next post.
• I do have another cycling workout on the table; unfortunately, my computer ate it yesterday (Audigy crashed and I had to start over).
• The weather here has been absolutely beautiful--60+ F and sunny (well, it's currently raining, but Thursday, Friday, and Saturday were gorgeous). I got a long run in Thursday of 10 miles, which unfortunately may have been too much. It had been two (maybe three) weeks since my last long run, and I think that the sudden re-establishment of heavy mileage demanded too much from my poor legs, which said, "Oh! no thank you! (link has some language)" As a result, my right foot and ankle are a little cranky--too cranky for running, which I discovered this morning when I tried to take advantage of the beautiful weather before church. So I may have to take (another!) hiatus from running. This is disappointing. But I will find a way (maybe the elliptical trainer?! noooo!).
• I'm still eating around 80% raw, 20% cooked. I am really enjoying salads, dried fruit, fresh fruit, and nuts. Without having to worry about getting 100% of my calories from raw food, I don't have to muck about with nasty things like green smoothies (my one attempt at a green smoothie was teeth-burningly disgusting, which isn't to say that they're all universally bad). I also feel like it's much easier to put calories back into my body after 10-mile runs and 30-mile bike rides (potatoes, anyone?).
• I road my bike to Lake Afton on Friday, wetsuit in tow, to see if it's warm enough yet for swimming. It's not.
  
• I've reached that magical point of base training where I feel frickin' slow. And I want to go fast. But I must stick with my plan and go slow for another month. Sigh . . .

But you know what? Triathletes are great overcomers. We are. That's why so many of us suck at swimming and end up injured; whenever we come up against a challenge, we think, "Okay, I just gotta keep going. Just gotta keep those legs moving. Just gotta muscle my way to the end of the pool and back three more times."

A final note: Congrats to my friend Jonathan in the Distance for completing Ironman New Zealand this weekend! Fight on, Jonathan!