ice baths and other thoughts

I've made lots of discoveries on this path of training for an Ironman. There are too many to list, really, and I'm sure if I tried I would leave out some really important ones. So I'll focus on some things from this past weekend...which, by the way, was a "big" one training-wise since we did our first 100-mile bike ride and our first 20-mile run. (Note: this was my longest bike ride and my longest run to date!)
Some thoughts about the weekend...
- 100 miles is a heck of a long way to bike (wind or no wind, it's just a lot of time to be in the saddle! I can only imagine 12 more miles!)
- 20 miles is a heck of a long way to run (on fresh legs or tired legs...it's a significant distance...but my first 20-miler felt good today! yeah! I felt strong and challenged and satisfied by how we did...yeah running buddies - Laura, Liz, Jim, Blythe, and Amy)
- both of the distances go by faster if you have friends and training buddies with you...if the sun is out...if you keep smiling even when you experience pain...if you have a good song to sing...if you are really loving what you are doing
- my body/our bodies can do way more than I ever thought possible...and can recover from injuries in amazing ways if you take care of them (insert deep gratitude here for no shin splint pain!)
- "ignorance is bliss"...I think I felt relatively little anxiety about this weekend purely because I had no tangible experience of how tough it would be. I (foolishly?) just assumed I could do it all based on the training that we've been doing and because none of my coaches have told me to throw in the towel yet. I could only imagine it and those images didn't really do it justice! At any rate, I'm incredibly grateful that my first 100-mile ride and 20-mile run went so well/felt so solid.
- why, oh why, can I bike 100 miles and run 20 miles and then totally wimp out about the two ice baths I forced myself to take this weekend?! Seriously. I did get in. I did soak for 20 minutes each time. I didn't freeze completely (although I was shivering like mad). I was thanking my Saturday ice bath on Sunday when I was running. Yes, yes, yes...all of these things. But I acted like a kid being forced to take gross tasting medicine as I tried to get into the tub! Amy said I have a lot of mental fortitude, well, it didn't look like that in the bathroom this weekend. Or maybe it did once I got in and forced myself to stay in.
- friends who go the distance with you on the bike, on the running trail, and in life are the most valuable sort...I'm humbled that I'm surrounded by so many in so many areas of my life
- having someone say they believe in you or are proud of you can carry you through some of the painful moments along the way
- and continuing to deepen your belief in yourself is a gift beyond compare
Here's to another great week of training...and life.