4/7/2013: Feeling Like a Champion!!

Yesterday I accomplished something I would never have even considered attempting a year ago.  I rode my bike 21 miles, changed my shoes, and ran 5 miles.  It was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life but I did it!  A year ago, who would have imagined I could accomplish that feat?  Not me, that's a fact!  But I did it.

It was a beautiful day, 75 degrees and sunny with a decent breeze.  Jack and I had plenty of chores to do, not the least of which was getting our 2012 taxes filed, including writing a pretty decent sized check to Uncle Sam.  By the time I got everything done that I needed to get done, it was about 3:30 in the afternoon and I knew if I wanted to exercise I better get it done.  It was so pretty out, and I was behind on my exercise for the week because of my trip to Colorado, so I decided to do a bike/run brick.  In my mind I was going to do a relatively short bike ride, followed by a five mile run.  So I loaded my bike in the car and headed to a nearby jogging/biking path.

The first 10 miles or so on my bike are always a little rough, as it takes some time to get acclimated to pedaling, but as I was riding I took note of the mileage and identified the landmark that would be my 2.5 mile turnaround point for my run.  The path ends at about 6 miles, so I turned around there and rode back, passing my starting point.  I was only going to go a couple more miles, turn around, and start my run; but by then I was really enjoying being on my bike and I was kind of curious about where the path went next, so I kept riding.  I finally turned around and headed back to the car, after riding a total distance of 21 miles.  I made the transition from biking to running as fast as I could, just taking the time to change shoes, throw my bike in the back of the car, and call Jack to let him know I would be later than I thought I would because of the longer than expected bike ride.

As I headed out on the run portion of my brick I considered shortening the run, since I rode further than I planned, but I decided against that.  Mostly, because I didn't identify any landmarks for shorter runs and I wanted to know how far I went.  Silly reason, I know, but that was my reason, nevertheless.  I did figure I would run 2.5 miles and then walk back.  At least that way I would know how far I ran and know that I got 5 miles in, one way or another.

The first mile or so of running, after getting off my bike, was incredibly difficult.  The only other time I tried a brick it was really cold out, so my toes were numb and I couldn't really tell how much running was difficult because my feet were numb and how much it was difficult because I just got off my bike.  Now I know.  For some reason, it is not nearly as hard to transition from the stationary bike to the treadmill, I've done several indoor bricks this winter and they were nothing like this.  When I started running yesterday I felt like an elephant trying to run through mud up to my neck.  I felt like I could barely move.  The act of running felt so foreign and so slow.  I love being on my bike, especially about 20 miles into a bike ride.  When I do long distance biking, I am happiest between about mile 15 and mile 60.  That is when I feel completely in the groove of riding, the endorphins are pumping, I'm completely warmed up, and I'm not tired yet.  The first 10 miles on the bike are always a little rough, and after mile 60 being on my bike gets a little tiring, but that middle section is euphoric.  So the run part of the brick comes at a bad moment.  I go from doing something I love, something that feels so natural and free, to running.  When I started to run yesterday I felt like I was pushing one of those sleds that you see football players push against in practice.  I felt like I was barely moving.  I thought, "I can't do this.  This is impossible."  But I pushed those thoughts out of my head and kept on going.

After about a mile, running began to feel more natural again; but it took forever to get to my 2.5 mile half-way mark.  Almost the whole way there I was planning on walking back once I turned around.  But as I got close to my mark, probably half a mile away, I was feeling pretty good.  I decided I could make it back to that spot before I started walking.  I made it to the stump that was my turn around spot and headed back.  Then I passed the spot that I head mentally marked as my spot to start walking.  I felt fine.  I was three miles into my run and I decided I would keep running until something started to hurt and I needed to stop.  Nothing hurt, so I kept running.  I'm not saying it wasn't hard, by the time I was about 4 miles into my run I felt like I could barely move because I was so tired, but I kept running.  I knew I was actually moving, even though I felt like I was in slow motion, because I passed a walker going the same direction I was going in, at a pretty decent clip.  Since nothing hurt, I knew the only reason it was getting hard was because my body was looking for fuel and I also knew that my body would find it, somewhere.  It became a mental game, my body had to override my brain's desire to quit.  So I kept running.   The 2.5 miles back to my car were much, much shorter than the 2.5 miles to my turn around point.  It felt like half the distance.  As I got close to my car, maybe I was a half mile away at this point, I began to realize I was going to make it the entire 5 miles.  All of a sudden, my thought process shifted from, "When will I need to start walking," to, "I'm going to run this entire five miles!"  Then, almost as if by magic, I could see the parking lot where my car was parked.  I started to feel so victorious!  I knew I was going to make it.  I started singing "The Stars and Stripes Forever," with my fists pumping up in the air, cheering myself to the finish line.  The last little bit of my run was up a steep incline, to get from the path to the parking lot, I dug deep and ran up that hill with everything I had.  I made it!!  I was so pumped!!  I was in disbelief.  I was euphoric.  I felt like I had just completed the most difficult physical task of my life.  It was an incredible feeling.  It was very, very hard and I hope it gets easier as the tri gets closer, but I did it!  I really do feel like a champion!