Journey to Kona Day 193: Keep Moving

I haven't been hobbled by a race like the way I felt after my twenty mile run last Sunday in a long time.  Running races have a way of doing that.  I always say that it's hard to totally beat yourself up in an ironman marathon because you start on tired legs.  The fresher you are at the beginning of a run, the easier it is to beat yourself up.  Something that I've learned in the past couple of years is the importance of keeping moving in the days that follow.  Taking a rest day does NOT mean putting your feet up on the table.  In fact, that's a sure fire way to solidify all of the toxins that you've created in your body!  The key to a successful recovery is moving!  That's also the key to a healthy lifestyle.

In the two days following the race/long run, I swam and biked for nearly an hour and a half each day. I could feel my muscles getting their tone back and the stiffness and soreness leaving my body.  By Wednesday, it was almost entirely gone, to the extent that I was able to blast my way up the climb to my house at the end of my bike ride. It wasn't my fastest or my strongest, but it was solid.  I could tell that my legs were almost back.  As my coach reminds me, there are other signs beyond muscle soreness.  Fatigue is the most insidious and dangerous, and while keeping moving is the order of the day, so is getting enough sleep and rest.  Life is about balance, as is ironman training.

While we're on a five day trip to Colorado, I will keep moving.  I have my running shoes and I will use them every day. I can't quite pack up my bike.  Swimming is a possibility, but is a little harder to arrange the logistics for finding a good lap pool.  The key is to keep moving.  When I get back, I start a heavy block of volume training, with as much cycling time as I can muster. Lots of moving!