Life of an Age-Grouper

The time has finally arrived when I can start to really push my limiters and stretch my comfort zone without fear of injury. The timing is ideal as I now have just over a month to really enhance my fitness and fine tune my race game plan. For the past month I have stuck to the game plan as mentioned in my previous blog. The intensity and duration of my bike and running sessions have certainly increased. I've been reaping the rewards of my labor on the bike. My endurance has started to take off along with my power. What I have found great gratification in has been the harmony I found with my pedal stroke. I have achieved an entirely new level of smoothness and grace while pedaling. I no longer need to say to myself "smooth circles" every single second, of every minute, of every hour, of every ride. It's an extremely calming, tranquil and zen feeling to have my stroke so dialed. I'm not sure how to describe my running. Every run session prescribed to me since...

Six months of training is almost complete. I have endured freezing, body numbing bike rides, pitch dark, head lamp wearing runs, 4:00am swim sessions, mind numbing time on the trainer and treadmill and sleep deprivation all for what? To get to where I am today. With all the time and sacrifice put into training for this season I can say confidently that I'm getting into the best shape of my life. I have come out on top of almost every physical test that was thrown at me. Ive made improvements physically, mentally, and emotionally and have become a better person because of it. However where do I stand compared to everyone else? Have I made the necessary gains to better my competition? It's hard for me to say since I have only raced myself or should I say the clock? I'm starting to think that I need a true test, a race, to use as a litmus test. Thankfully I have my first race in a month or else I would be trying to race people in the pool, treadmill or road. This f...