The Indoor Thing

It's almost Spring outside and yet I still find myself rolling into my garage for a few quality hours on my computrainer. Since I am a fairly social being, I am quite certain this practice is not to hide away and train solo staring endless at concrete and a computer screen but rather to get the job done. It won't be long before I am hitting the sea 2 ski highway and cypress mountain with friends but right now I feel the need for focused workouts eliminating the chance of traffic jams, red lights or fowl weather.

Is there a benefit to staying indoors verses outdoors? Maybe but as long as the list is for positives, there is a list of negatives. It's a personal thing right now. The indoor thing is working for me. Maybe the efficiency of being indoors and close to the action is what I need as I find myself more and more engaged in my family business, Sunice. Maybe I like to be available. Maybe I like to be accessible.

I have outfitted my training space with towels, my ipod (loaded with great podcasts and music), water bottles and a workout. For X time, it is my sanctuary to focus on building my engine and revving my heart rate. I have even taken my running indoors. Treadmills give me feedback and consistency. There is no cheating or deviating from the stride. With a plan in hand, I start up the belt and get the feet turning over.

With all of this focused training, I balance it with outdoor spins and jaunts, playful and recovery in nature. The outdoors is where I am most free and alive. Fresh air and blue sky takes me to another level of gratitude. But the indoors is where I find my focus and mental stamina. It is where I zone in on the task, the effort and the sensation. It is where the work gets done.

Maybe someday I will purely ride for pleasure. Right now, there is pleasure plus specific goals and the indoor thing is working for me. Take it or leave it.

Up Tick

Finally I have had an up tick in my swimming fitness. Geez Louise. Getting 2 seconds from my 100's has been like squeezing a rock for water.

My speed in the pool goes in phases. I am hopeful you can relate. Is it fitness? Is it the other sports we do? Is it the early hours in the pool? Is it technique? Or all of the above. While the exact answer for my fluctuating speed graph isn't totally necessary, life just feels better when my body is moving through the water with ease and fluidity. Swimming 5-6 days a week means the pool and water play an important role in my life.

Tuesday was my "up tick" day. It was also after having a couple of weeks of focusing purely on turning my arms over with power, efficiency and strength instead of focusing on the minute details of high elbow, relaxed hands and perfect head position all of which has given me less speed, less confidence in the water and a bundle of frustration. Technique in swimming is incredibly important and if I could live my life over again I would have included swimming in my sport repertoire as a youngster. Since I was skiing or golfing instead, feel for a golf club or the slopes instead of density of water comes far more naturally to me.

If swimming Masters Competitions was purely my focus, perfecting the elusive swimmers stroke would continue to entice my curiosity. With a bike and run to follow a 2km swim, my stroke needs to be strong, rhythmical and efficient leaving me fresh for the next two thirds of the race. Since turning my attention in my pool workout to "race pace" efforts, high stroke rating and rhythmical turnovers, times are moving in my direction. Funny thing, I am riding and running faster too.

If a swim coach reads this, they will curse my name in vain, I have no doubt. But, if the red needle on the pace clock keeps slowing down (I keep speeding up) then my personalized formula may just be working. Pass it on.

My Promise

I promised myself I would start writing again on my Blog. It's been so many months and each day that passes makes it easier to avoid. Yet, this is a place to share experiences and pass on my passion for sport and life. I am lucky enough to have triathlon in my life and even luckier to experience it racing with the professional field. Every little workout and thought about sports and preparing to tax our bodies is a chance to learn and improve. We must share in this so we all get better and love what we do more and more.

Of late I have been learning about social media and the power of online communication. Faster than a click we can find out if an athlete won an race, an earthquake hit Japan or what the hottest topic is around the world. Amazing. It has changed the way I think about communication and the relevancy of so many exchanges, in person or online. It has also opened up a new community to me and when respected and purposed, online communication has its own etiquette and do's & don't. Although I am very much a neophite, I am fascinated and committed to delving in more and more. At first I was resistant to following topics related to sports and triathlon. Do I really care what Chrissie Wellington had for breakfast? But I sorted through those companies and people I respect and want to learn from (Chrissie is included on that list of people I respect) and read what I want to and leave the rest.

As I prepare for my racing season ahead of 70.3 Ironman's, I'll be using social media, tweeting about topics and things i think are relevant and hope you will too.

Much more to come and thanks for your patience.