Endurance Blogs

A few  months ago I wrote about swimming an entire 60 minute workout without goggles - just opened my eyes in the pool and embraced the freedom of  swimming without goggles - until I got out and realized the chlorine had melted away half of my contact lenses (not recommended as I had a headache for two days). Still, I was pretty impressed with myself for sucking it up and getting through the ‘adversity' of that particular workout.

I was reminded of this when I saw Michael Phelps win gold at this year's Olympics in his premier event - the 200 meter butterfly. He could not have looked less satisfied - tossing his cap and goggles onto the deck as if they were not worthy of being in the pool.  Turns out, upon entering the pool his goggles filled up with water and stayed that way for the entire event.   For just over 1 minute and 51 seconds he crushed all challengers - essentially with his eyes closed.

The average person would be quickly consumed by the negative vibe associated with something going wrong - especially at a time like this (an Olympic finals event).  And I guess that is why people like Phelps are able to consistently perform at the level they do - they seem to have an uncanny ability to block out anything that is not moving them in a positive direction - they inherently, and seemingly proactively, eclipse any potential negative energy - at least for as long as they need to get to the finish.

I am sure this is the same type of positive consciousness that elite gymnasts dip into when they fall of the balance beam and then get up to continue executing severely complex techniques with perfection to complete their routine.  It has always amazed me. 

On August 24th we will kick off the 2008 Ramblin' Rose Women Only Triathlon Tour in Winston-Salem, NC.  With over 50% of the participants being first timers, the value of embracing this positive mindset will be significant for all involved.  And as anyone who has witnessed one of these events knows, there is plenty to go around as hundreds of mothers, daughters, sisters, and grandmothers cross the finish line beaming with pride and accomplishment.  This too, consistently amazes me. www.endurancemag.com/ramblinrose

For our cover story, Charlie Engle, along with his partner Marshall Ulrich, is about to embark on a mission that is certain to test his positive consciousness as they strive to cross the US from San Francisco to New York City in 45 days - on foot.  Imagine what your perspective would be after running across the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range only to find, once on the other side, that you see nothing but desert as you start into Nevada - with 80% of the country still left to cross. Is it:
"Holy crap, I just ran across the Sierras! - I am awesome!" or perhaps,
 "I'll never make it across this miserably endless desert".  
Which way would you see it? [Their run starts on September 13th.]  www.runningamerica08.com

Some would argue there is a collective energy - a collective consciousness - that exists for us all to tap into - that affects all of us. The more positive energy we put out there, the more there will be for each of us.  Our Endurance Magazine Citizen team will be looking for some of that energy at the Duke Half Ironman (especially on the run portion) this month.  If you have a moment on September 14th, feel free to send some our way.   

Inspire.  Perform.  Endure.
-Steve
PS - Rule #63: Never pass up an opportunity to compare yourself, no matter how far-reaching, to the most decorated Olympian of all time.

Comment (0)

Great minds think alike.  I recently discovered one of our blog readers "invented" copying Hemingway's style for Endurance Sports Writing long before I did.  In fact, he dooes it much better than I have...  Check this link out and scroll down for "The Old Man and His Wetsuit."

http://triguyjt.blogspot.com/2008/03/hemingway-and-holly.html

 

Comment (0)

 

The funniest question I ever heard at a triathlon pre-race meeting was "how deep is the water?"  Everyone chuckled because obviously the time to worry about not being able to stand in open water is NOT 2 minutes before the swim start!  It was very funny to me, of course, because I spent most of my early twenties surfing the Pacific Ocean in Southern California.  I surfed a couple of El Nino sized waves and fought some pretty tough conditions on many occassions just to make it out to the surf line-up beyound the break, so I've always been a bit cocky about open water swims.  It wasn't until I was on my first training swim in the Gulf of Mexico at Ironman Florida, however that I finally understood the feelings of the person who asked that "silly" question we all laughed about. 

 During my first training swim prior to the race, I swam out to the first buoy, about a half mile and as is my tradition on long triathlon swims, I punched the buoy as I swam around it.  Just as I was about to put my face back in the water and charge back in to the beach, I caught a faint glimpse of the shore... a faint glimpse.  Holy cow!  It was so far away, I was kind of scared.  I lost my breath and instinctively looked for the Gulf's sandy bottom beneath the surface.  I couldn't see it!  Just then another swimmer rounded the buoy and without thinking of the silliness of the question, I asked him this:

Comment (1) Read More...

Just like everyone else, I am swamped. All the time. And squeezing in time to train for upcoming races has been getting tricky lately.

Earlier this month, I had a limited window to get in a long swim and then a quick bike ride. I didn’t really have much time to spare, so when I got into the pool and realized my goggles had warped in the heat of my car, my immediate stress was quickly replaced by a need to keep moving. The ‘extras’ that were hanging on the hooks at the pool had Nemo and Ariel on them (I passed), and I fearfully realized the clock was ticking. So I brilliantly decided to swim my set without goggles. I could see pretty well underwater, and I figured it would be good practice in case something ever went wrong at a race. Plus it made me feel tough since all the other sissies in the pool had to wear goggles.

The first hundred yards went well. No problems. I felt smooth. Thoughts going through included the following: “Wow, I really can swim without goggles”, “Think of the time I can save by not having to take off my goggles in a race!”, “That lifeguard must think I’m Aquaman”, “I wonder if I am actually MORE aerodynamic without the drag of the goggles”, “I’ll be the fastest swimmer alive!”

After 35 minutes and 2100 yards, I got out of the pool and was ready to sprint over to my bike, feeling great…except for one small problem. That cloudy view I had under water wasn’t going away. Apparently, the pool water had been slowly melting away my contact lenses. I’m pretty sure that’s not recommended. Worse, now that I was out of the pool, I started feeling a slight burning sensation across my entire forehead. The headache that ensued was miserable and, 45 minutes into my bike ride, my unusual level of fatigue was magnified by … how to best describe? … a specific eye-disintegration-type feeling. In stereo. On repeat.

I was pretty worthless for the next few hours. It lasted through the night and my eyes actually took about a full day to recover.

The moral: Just because you CAN do something doesn’t mean that you SHOULD. If you need to take a few extra minutes to take care of yourself before/during/after a workout (or race), go ahead and take them.

More on that in our coming issues, but it’s finally Fall, and there’s a ton of stuff out there that you CAN and SHOULD do. Check out our printed calendar in the back for a taste and then go online to www.activezach.com to see what experiences are out there waiting for you. Sure it may not seem like it, but we all really do have the time.

Inspire. Perform. Endure.

Comment (0)