Quick question, why are you trying to get healthier? Eating better or working to lose weight because “it’s a good thing” or “my doctor said…
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Below is the latest installment (for the week of 1/20/2013) of my weekly syndicated column THE PARENT ATHLETE. You can read it in print and…
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Me and the race mascot chillin’ pre-race start. I was privileged to take part in Saturday’s 3rd Annual Sehgahunda Trail Marathon along with the other founders of TrailsROC.org and many other friends. What an awesome day! Here’s the recap…
Oh, Sehgahunda. You little bastard.
At this point in my short (I was obese less than three years ago) endurance racing “career”, a trail marathon isn’t too bad. I’ve soloed longer trails. 10-12 hours spent mountain biking or trail running are second nature by this point. Heck, I was actually using Sehgahunda as a part of my off road triathlon training because I’m tackling a solo off road Ironman triathlon later this year. Coming into Saturday’s race I’d already thrown in a 100 mile single speed road bike and 2.5 mile swim in the week prior just to see how my body would respond to it all. So I know what I’m capable of and had no reservations at all headed into Saturday’s race. I showed up ready to go, not play it conservatively, and see how fast I could crank through Sehgahunda’s 26.3 miles of trail with a goal of finishing in the 5:30 range – give or take half an hour.
But in my racing experience I’ve also learned, mostly the hard way, that I need to listen to my body. Especially with endurance undertakings. There’s a time to push your limits. The pain cave has become a familiar “friend” by now. But there’s also a time to back off, cut your losses, and live to fight another day. Like when you’re risking heat stroke; like during Saturday’s race.
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