My new year resolution was to take my physical condition more seriously. My wife and I joined the new Y that opened up by our house, and decided to get ourselves into respectable shape. It has been five months since I began physical training and I have completed 2 5K's, 1 mountain bike race, lost 22 pounds, and feel amazing.
In the past 3 years, I have battled 2 knee surguries, and constant pain when getting up or down out of a chair, walking steps, or kneeling. Lately, I have slowly noticed the joint pain disappearing almost completely. I don't have to think about climbing stairs, or kicking a ball in the back yard.
So, today, as I sit back and take a day of rest, I am satisfied with my new direction. I have been thinking about a new set of goals for myself, since I have completed my first running and conditioning goals. I have decided on some short term and long term objectives to keep myself focused and heading in the right direction.
First, I have been reading about triathlons, and have decided to make competing in a sprint distance triathlon a goal. I am planning to do this by May of next year at the very least. A more immediate challenge is going to be the swim. My immediate short term goal is to swim 500m without stopping.
Second, I want to continue training to run. I will be focusing on two objectives in this area. I want to complete my next 5K in August under 25 minutes averaging under 8 1/2 minutes per mile. I may be pushing it a bit here, but a good goal is not always achievable. I plan to run the Hot August Night 5K in downtown Columbia. This will be an interesting test, since not only will I be pushing for a new personal record, but the race is at 5pm in the afternoon during the hottest part of the year. Also, I want to add some distance in my run training. I plan to move up and compete in a 12K. The goal will be to do Ray Tanner's Home Run Race in October.
Thirdly, I have been reading about training for these types of things, and feel all of the above are very doable, however, I need to be smart about this and not psuh to hard as I go forward. Leading up to this past weekend's race, I cut back on running because of shin splints. By all accounts this is in part due to poor shoes, but I was also over-doing my training. From what I have read, I need to take my rest/ recovery time more seriously. I have been cramming as much training as possible into my schedule. I don't need to make every workout a full tilt session. I don't want to burn out too fast, and wind up back where I started from five months ago.
Next Goal: Swim 500m without stopping (The Sprint Triathlon Swim Distance)
Current Status: Lazy and lovin' it
Upcoming: Monday Night Dome Swim with rest breaks, but a total of 800m in the pool at the Y.
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Rest is just as important as training at the right level of effort. A heart rate monitor would really help keep your easy days easy and your hard days honest. I'm thinking about a sub 22 5K after Stumpjump. After that race most of the other races involve lots of travel time that the little one won't allow. I might use 5k's as fitness goals to stay in shape for cycling.
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