Yesterday, was another trainer party. Bad weather promised in Georgia (ah-hem…it barely rained until long after…) I was the only chick in the room. But I love this rental house man… we could fit 20 more bikes in here.
I think I just had an idea… 🙂
Here was yesterday: one Expert, the Weatherman (who should have known that it wasn’t going to rain, hello!?)… and my CDA friend, Columbus (who at some point during the ride actually said, “I can get ALL the maps on my Garmin now.” I thought, Now that is going on the blog! Columbus has all the maps!)
So after spending 5.5 hours on the bike trainer, I was going to the bathroom before finishing up my last 30 minutes.
Coming back from the bathroom, my slick bike shoes met with the slick hardwood floors… and I ended up hitting the ground. Right on my rear. Hard.
Hard.
I hit so hard that it knocked the wind out of me. Columbus, who had finished his 4 hour trainer ride and was in the middle of a 2 hour treadmill run, dashed over to me. I rolled onto my stomach on the floor. I immediately thought, Well, I just broke my tailbone.…
I hit the floor SO hard. So hard. I swear I shook the house. I didn’t even have a chance to brace myself. Which may, in hindsight, been good because I might have broken a wrist or elbow or something.
So after laying on the floor for a bit… what did I do? Well, I paced around —-then I got back on the bike, of course. [I needed to know if I could bike…. And it was not great. But I could do it. Yay, number one.]
But today, I am in a lot of pain. Sitting at the desk is painful. Bending over is painful. Walking is painful. We won’t talk about the potty.
So again. Here I am. Swim Bike Klutz trying to do Ironman.
I am trying to figure out all the lessons I am learning through this process. Through the process of the past year and a half—breaking and spraining feet, broken ribs, job issues, family issues, the new hip pain, my stupid klutzy ways… now pain in the rear. Literally.
All of these lessons. Life lessons and perspective and keeping focused on what really matters.
Because you can bike forever and feel strong and fit… but then you walk and crack your rear on the floor. Almost 6 hour trainer ride notwithstanding.
And you can possibly break your butt, and not be able to bike or train or do anything but eat ice cream (which is all I want to do right now).
I’m just frustrated—nothing seems to be working out as I planned right now. So many things are up in the air…. I feel like it’s going to take a miracle to get me across that finish line at this rate.
But all I know is that I love my family. I am lucky to have the chance to even experience all of this. The good, the bad and the ridiculous.
So that’s my story. And onward I go. #JustKeepMovingForward
You know the unspoken race, leading up to your Ironman, is the race to get to the start line healthy, unbroken, unscared and in 1 piece!!! Clearly you are hitting every pit-fall along the way, and I’m sorry for that. The silver lining is this: at least you’re dealing with each piece of adversity as it lands in your ever-shrinking lap, and you’re banking experience. Everything may go right on race day. Nothing may go right on race day, and you need to be able to pull yourself out of feeling frustrated, otherwise you’re looking at making an already long race, seem that much longer. Consider this part of your mental training and remember you’re now in the homestretch, where crazy gets crazier! Hang tough, Buttercup!
All these experiences will sure come in handy on race day! You’ll do great… they’re all little tests to see how tough you are. Wish I could be there on race day but believe me that all the day from across the pond I’ll be cheering you on and will be so so so proud of you!
And here is THE lesson. YOU are NOT in charge. Let it go and, dunh, duhn, duhn….keep moving forward.
http://brylfamily5.blogspot.com/2012/07/the-plan.html
RELAX!!! You are doing just awesome. Try to get out of your own head and just let it all be. Your training is going great, you’re doing great and everyone is routing for you. All the issues are coming from the stress you’re putting on yourself mentally. We’ve all been there! You’re awesome and will do awesome in Ironman! Now breathe.
Hi! I’m training for CDA too and having a similar training season as you. You are doing GREAT! I am thoroughly impressed that you are riding the trainer for 6 hours! OMG!!!!! Keep at it – that’s what everyone is telling me too. I’m showing up on 6/23 and so are you – we’ll see what the day brings. No training is ever perfect right? Hope you feel better!
Dolores 🙂
do we need to wrap you up in bubble wrap?!?!?
Thank you for this post today. I needed it. I feel like I’m in the same oat and I’m getting frustrated. My first half-Ironman is four weeks away and I’m lucky if I can run a mile right now. My health and body have been a constant source of frustration for me right now and I can’t seem to fix it!! I I’m really glad to hear I’m not the only one that struggles with training sometimes.
This IS NOT a fun problem. How do I know? I am dealing with it too. I have to tell you that I stumbled upon this website after a bad bike crash and a mental breaking point. Why did I think I could do this? I can’t swim, bike, or run well at all. Then I watched your video and I cried. And I watched it again and I cried. And then I decided I could go on training for my first Tri. But I digress…my first bike ride after the major crash resulted in a major bump to the tailbone, and I have been suffering ever since. Here is my advice (I am kinda qualified…I am an orthopedic physical therapist): ice regularly, take anti-inflammatories if you believe in that sort of thing, stretch your piriformis muscles, and pray for patience. If not getting better in a week or two you might want an xray to make sure it isn’t cracked (not that you can do anything if it is). And if you don’t have a fracture and it still hurts, then get a referral for PT. I swear….I have been ultrasounding my own tailbone at work and it is helping! Thanks for the daily inspiration!
I am SO feeling this way lately. Just keep your head up. What else can you do, right?