Spring Weather and
Racing come early!
With snow on the ground and it
still falling here in Indiana, you might think I’m crazy! Spring weather seems
to be far away, and who could think about racing a triathlon in March when you
live in the Midwest? Well some special circumstances have happened, and I will
be accompanying my dad down to Florida to help him Drive a U-haul and unload
once we get there. It just so happens I found a race in Orlando this coming
week (http://www.epicsportsmarketing.com/events/wildman-triathlon-festival) , so I jumped at the chance to race in warm weather, even if it is early in
my training. I’m not expecting any huge results, but it’s more just looking
forward to racing and having fun while getting a chance to see where my fitness
is at this point in the season.
Training
has been going very well so far this year; even with the long cold winter we
have had here in Indiana. I have become very good friends with my bike trainer,
riding indoors at least 4 days a week. I’m actually a little worried about
racing outdoors, because I haven’t rode outside in close to 3 months. I’m
hoping the quality sets on the trainer will payoff, and this will be a good
test on a flat, fast course in Florida.
I’m
really excited for this whole season to really begin. I have already signed up
for 3 half Ironman’s this year as I look to focus on this distance. I believe
it to be my best distance, so it only seems logical to race it more. This off-season
was really good for me. I got back into the weight room and put on some solid
weight. I added over 10lbs from my race weight at the end of the year. I’m now
down about 5lbs from that, and will probably lean up more as bigger races get
here, but I feel stronger than ever.
More importantly, I feel functionally strong. Just getting strong
doesn’t help that much if you can’t transfer it to sport-specific movements.
This is something I feel I’ve done very well and I’m excited to see how I carry
into race season. On top of that, I’ve been basically injury-free and haven’t
missed hardly any workouts all year. (Other then cutting a few short.) This is
another big component of strength training; it helps prevent injury. Other than
that, I am simply enjoying being able to train, and seeing myself progress each
day.
On
a personal note, I’ve loved even more watching my little man grow each day. He
lights up my life and give me motivation each and everyday. Thanks to my
amazing family for all of your help, and to my incredible wife, the best mother
and person I’ve ever met.
Big Sister checking out her new little brother
Playing a little copy cat. Jackson makes a face, and I copy! lol
