Starting to enjoy myself

In the last couple of weeks I have noticed a strange sensation beginning to stir that I have not felt for a good few months. It's the feeling of wanting to be out there, doing some focussed work and training. It's basically come about through training with friends and finding enjoyment in just being outdoors. The weather's been horrific as we all know, but when you're mostly in the Thames anyway after throwing yourself out of a K1, pouring rain hardly matters.

Allied to that I caught up with Simon at the weekend after his great performance in the Outlaw. I had been feeling pretty guilty as I was meant to have done the race with him and then when that was not going to happen I was meant to have helped him train for it, but my foot injury and my resulting slump had not seen that happen either. Simon had some really supportive words for me and spinning around Surrey on Sunday morning with him, despite the atrocious weather, has helped me to start to get back on track. A bit of perspective goes a long way.

My ambition to run a sub-3 marathon in the Spring still seems very remote however. Until I know what's wrong with my foot I am not going to run. I had another GP consultation and now I have at last been referred to a clinic that will hopefully diagnose what's going on. Touch wood, by the end of the summer. With nothing to train for I have to get some kind of structure to my week so I've decided on a few simple steps to get the ball rolling. Firstly, my long weekend bike ride. I have simply got out of the habit of  getting into the Surrey Hills and a 2 to 3 hour bike ride, hitting Crocknorth, Whitedown, Ranmoor Common and Boxhill will go a very long way towards getting me some fitness back. I fully admit that watching 'Le Tour' over the last week has rekindled the desire to get back on my bike and to ride purely for the sake of it rather than training for something. That can come later. Some commute rides or evening tempo rides will hopefully provide a bit of quality to the bike work. 2 rides minimum per week, but hopefully 3. Thursday night is going to become swim night. My favourite pool stays open until 10.30pm so there really is no excuse. I have delayed and then delayed some more getting back into the pool because I have not had a tri to train for, but mostly because I was not looking forward to starting entirely from scratch again and frankly feeling pretty rubbish. I went last Thursday for the first time since July last year and the first few hundred metres were very ouchy. But gradually things started to come back and before I knew it I had a smile on my face. 15 x 100m done mostly as drills (catch up, fists, finger drag) with some full stroke in between. As I left the pool I was kicking myself; why hadn't I done this sooner?

So, 2-3 rides per week, at least 1 swim (2 if time and Mrs Wheezy allow) and 1 paddle. That sounds doable.

Onwards.