Focus on the Now

Blogging this journey has forced me to reflect on a weekly basis as to a) what we're doing with ourselves physically and b) what lessons we're learning as we prepare for next September (which feels like an eternity away). So .  . . here goes with the lessons and the cataloguing for this week:

 First, the cataloguing. I hit the pool a few times this week, biked, and lifted. JT swam and biked, and then he doctored. A night-time swim session left him with a numb leg, and the people-smarter-than-us told him he needed to seek some treatment.

One chiropractor visit, some x-rays, and some kind of funky electronic treatment led to the discovery that his pelvis and his back didn't line up. He said the x-rays pics were revealing and interesting to say the least. The chiropractor also gave him pretty strict orders to do nothing this weekend--no biking, no running, and no swimming.

Rest came pretty easily to him considering we are away visiting family for the weekend. So the foam roller took the place of the running shoes in the back of our beloved Ellie (the family vehicle). JT's biggest nemesis is the seat of the SUV he had to sit in for 700 miles. And this is where we once again thank God for small children. They can't sit for 700 miles either. So we stop. A lot. And we do laps around the vehicle at toddler/pre-school pace.

 Now, about those lessons . . .

 I keep thinking that triathlon--all the training, the awards, the finish line--has zero value if we can't take something away that helps us in the life that really matters.

 Several  times when I am in the middle of a workout, I cannot help but fast forward and put myself churning along in the Tennessee River or somewhere on a Georgia road gliding along in aero or pounding some pavement in Chattanooga.

 And then I stop.

The fear that ensures, moreso than the curiosity, has the potential to paralyze me mentally. And to press on, to endure a painful experience, we must focus on the now. Looking ahead does little good, save avoiding pitfalls that might lie ahead. But if we're in a place where we do not know the future, then looking ahead is a futile act.

 Insert real-life lesson here.

 When in the middle of a painful experience, we need to focus on the benefits, the now. Looking ahead does little good except to know that the pain will not last forever. 

 I read last week a profound quote by Teddy Roosevelt: "“Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty… I have never in my life envied a human being who led an easy life. I have envied a great many people who led difficult lives and led them well.”

Ironman and triathlon in general puts us in a place of effort, pain, and difficulty. It forces us to grow, to overcome an uncomfortable position. My hope is that someday, maybe even now, that we'll overcome uncomfortable positions because of this training.

 
For now, we're dealing with discomfort of a sore hip and just general inactivity. And yes, that is uncomfortable. Time to focus.