Wednesday, August 04, 2004
tri training and other thoughts
yeah yeah... i know i know... its been a while since i've blogged.
things are really hectic on this end with a deadline for work. usually when i get this way, i procrastinate and blog even all the more, but this time its REALLY bad... so bad that i haven't had much time to process important things that need to be processed...
so some of you may know that i've been training for a triathlon. its been over 21 weeks now, and the day of the triathlon is fast approaching. since i've gotten more into working out and training, so many more biblical analogies have come to life for me. for that i'm excited and thankful. i've generally really enjoyed the process, and a few weeks ago, i did my second triathlon (first one of the season) and was really disappointed with my time. with as much work as i had put into training, i only improved overall by one minute. that really stunk since the last time i did it (my very first tri) i trained only for two weeks and came in only one minute slower than this time. that following sunday, the pastor who spoke made a side point that really spoke to me. so many things we invest in yield rewards that don't match the effort we put into it. one thing we can be certain of is that investing in our walks with the Lord will never disappoint. ahh... what a poignant object lesson of "physical discipline profiteth little." as disappointed as i was, i was thankful to have learned that lesson.
so... with the deadlines for daniel/revelation looming, i've been working my butt off... but still needing to find time to keep working out and training for the triathlon. i mean, come on, i did not come this far to just quit. that's been my thought. but after the disappointment of the last tri (which was only a sprint distant) i was really not feeling up for working hard for another 3 weeks only to be disappointed again by a bad time, or even worse, a DNF (did not finish). i think i'm often too ambitious and unrealistic about what i can accomplish, and i'm wondering if this tri is one of them. in order to really train, we started swimming in the lake this week.
monday night. i'm still exhausted from working all weekend and working hard that day, and i'm so not feeling up for swimming in the lake. training has been tiring, but training and a ton of work on top of it for the last two weeks has really taken a toll on my body. i'm achey, don't want to get up in the mornings... and yeah, just plain ol' exhausted (mentally, physically, emotionally). on the run down to ohio beach, i passed the 1/2 mile marker to which i would need to swim to (and then loop back) to make it a mile swim. i so was not up for it mentally... i was like, dude, there is no way i can do that. so instead of doing the whole mile (1600 meters), katy and i decided on 1200 for the first day (in the back of my mind, i was still fighting this feeling of dude... maybe i shouldn't bother and just not do the tri in three weeks, i mean, what's the big deal?)
so after the agreement, we walked into the lake. all around us were serious triathletes with their wet suits and here we were, in our regular suits, walking into the chilly water (first time this year for me). burrr... i was fighting it (and whining) the whole time. then i thought, ok... i just have to do this. that's all there was to it. with that, we jumped right in and started swimming.
i wasn't clear as to where i was going, and that made the swim all the more difficult, looking up periodically to see where katy was. luckily, she had a bright yellow cap on and was easy to spot. i had to look out at a point beyond her, though, to keep swimming straight. looking up really broke up the rhythm of the swim, but it was definitely necessary. if i didn't go straight, i would have expended even more energy to get where i needed to go by veering off too much. the swim was really really tough. i felt like i was going nowhere and the water was beating me up. it was a different experience than at janesville (the sprint distant tri) where i wasn't properly warmed up and was out of breath... no, i was in control of my breathing, but my muscles were tired. my whole body was screaming out for me to quit but i know i couldn't. if i were not moving forward, the waves will push me back, and if i just stopped altogether, i die. i had no choice but to keep going.
ironically, after a while, i really started enjoying it. it was an odd sort of rush. by the time i got to the 600 meter mark (and katy is waiting for me there) i wanted to go some more. i felt rejuvenated wanted to finish all 1600 meters. katy told me later how surprised she was to hear that since i was whining the whole way there and in. i can't quite explain the rush of knowing that i was capable of fighting those waves and surviving, even though it was tough and tiring.
this "swim or die" rush... isn't that so much like our Christian walks? its so easy to get lazy when we're swimming in the pool. i know i can reach out for a wall if i get tired and rest there for a while. i know exactly where the bottom is and the waves are minimal... so minimal that when someone swims by and create a little ruffle, i'd get annoyed. the "controlled" environment that we as Christians often put ourselves into is so much like this. no real challenge and we get lax. yeah sure, we can race against the clock and such, but really, its just a personal disappointment if i dont' make it in the times that i set. no real loss. out in the lake, if you grow lax and take too long, it will grow dark and cold, and quickly become a matter of life and death. when the stakes are that high and you're swimming for survival, you've just GOT to bust your chops -- or else. how often do we willingly put ourselves into those situations in the swim of life? what's the big deal, you may ask. if we don't spiritually practice "swimming in the lake" as it were, will we survive when we're thrown into the tempest of real life one day? sure, we've "practiced" in the pool, but will that be enough to survive?
i think there's also a lesson in perseverance in all of this... but i guess i'll tell you more about that lesson when i'm done with this course i'm working on and COMPLETED the triathlon (yes, i'm going to do it. i have to do it...). lake swims rock... yes, you feel beat up, but man, was it awell-worth it rush.
today, i'm thankful that life lessons are all around us and that God is gracious to reveal those to us if we're willing to look and listen.
yeah yeah... i know i know... its been a while since i've blogged.
things are really hectic on this end with a deadline for work. usually when i get this way, i procrastinate and blog even all the more, but this time its REALLY bad... so bad that i haven't had much time to process important things that need to be processed...
so some of you may know that i've been training for a triathlon. its been over 21 weeks now, and the day of the triathlon is fast approaching. since i've gotten more into working out and training, so many more biblical analogies have come to life for me. for that i'm excited and thankful. i've generally really enjoyed the process, and a few weeks ago, i did my second triathlon (first one of the season) and was really disappointed with my time. with as much work as i had put into training, i only improved overall by one minute. that really stunk since the last time i did it (my very first tri) i trained only for two weeks and came in only one minute slower than this time. that following sunday, the pastor who spoke made a side point that really spoke to me. so many things we invest in yield rewards that don't match the effort we put into it. one thing we can be certain of is that investing in our walks with the Lord will never disappoint. ahh... what a poignant object lesson of "physical discipline profiteth little." as disappointed as i was, i was thankful to have learned that lesson.
so... with the deadlines for daniel/revelation looming, i've been working my butt off... but still needing to find time to keep working out and training for the triathlon. i mean, come on, i did not come this far to just quit. that's been my thought. but after the disappointment of the last tri (which was only a sprint distant) i was really not feeling up for working hard for another 3 weeks only to be disappointed again by a bad time, or even worse, a DNF (did not finish). i think i'm often too ambitious and unrealistic about what i can accomplish, and i'm wondering if this tri is one of them. in order to really train, we started swimming in the lake this week.
monday night. i'm still exhausted from working all weekend and working hard that day, and i'm so not feeling up for swimming in the lake. training has been tiring, but training and a ton of work on top of it for the last two weeks has really taken a toll on my body. i'm achey, don't want to get up in the mornings... and yeah, just plain ol' exhausted (mentally, physically, emotionally). on the run down to ohio beach, i passed the 1/2 mile marker to which i would need to swim to (and then loop back) to make it a mile swim. i so was not up for it mentally... i was like, dude, there is no way i can do that. so instead of doing the whole mile (1600 meters), katy and i decided on 1200 for the first day (in the back of my mind, i was still fighting this feeling of dude... maybe i shouldn't bother and just not do the tri in three weeks, i mean, what's the big deal?)
so after the agreement, we walked into the lake. all around us were serious triathletes with their wet suits and here we were, in our regular suits, walking into the chilly water (first time this year for me). burrr... i was fighting it (and whining) the whole time. then i thought, ok... i just have to do this. that's all there was to it. with that, we jumped right in and started swimming.
i wasn't clear as to where i was going, and that made the swim all the more difficult, looking up periodically to see where katy was. luckily, she had a bright yellow cap on and was easy to spot. i had to look out at a point beyond her, though, to keep swimming straight. looking up really broke up the rhythm of the swim, but it was definitely necessary. if i didn't go straight, i would have expended even more energy to get where i needed to go by veering off too much. the swim was really really tough. i felt like i was going nowhere and the water was beating me up. it was a different experience than at janesville (the sprint distant tri) where i wasn't properly warmed up and was out of breath... no, i was in control of my breathing, but my muscles were tired. my whole body was screaming out for me to quit but i know i couldn't. if i were not moving forward, the waves will push me back, and if i just stopped altogether, i die. i had no choice but to keep going.
ironically, after a while, i really started enjoying it. it was an odd sort of rush. by the time i got to the 600 meter mark (and katy is waiting for me there) i wanted to go some more. i felt rejuvenated wanted to finish all 1600 meters. katy told me later how surprised she was to hear that since i was whining the whole way there and in. i can't quite explain the rush of knowing that i was capable of fighting those waves and surviving, even though it was tough and tiring.
this "swim or die" rush... isn't that so much like our Christian walks? its so easy to get lazy when we're swimming in the pool. i know i can reach out for a wall if i get tired and rest there for a while. i know exactly where the bottom is and the waves are minimal... so minimal that when someone swims by and create a little ruffle, i'd get annoyed. the "controlled" environment that we as Christians often put ourselves into is so much like this. no real challenge and we get lax. yeah sure, we can race against the clock and such, but really, its just a personal disappointment if i dont' make it in the times that i set. no real loss. out in the lake, if you grow lax and take too long, it will grow dark and cold, and quickly become a matter of life and death. when the stakes are that high and you're swimming for survival, you've just GOT to bust your chops -- or else. how often do we willingly put ourselves into those situations in the swim of life? what's the big deal, you may ask. if we don't spiritually practice "swimming in the lake" as it were, will we survive when we're thrown into the tempest of real life one day? sure, we've "practiced" in the pool, but will that be enough to survive?
i think there's also a lesson in perseverance in all of this... but i guess i'll tell you more about that lesson when i'm done with this course i'm working on and COMPLETED the triathlon (yes, i'm going to do it. i have to do it...). lake swims rock... yes, you feel beat up, but man, was it awell-worth it rush.
today, i'm thankful that life lessons are all around us and that God is gracious to reveal those to us if we're willing to look and listen.
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