Every now and then, each of us needs to take a moment and look back, so that we can look forward more clearly. This is what I call a reboot. For me there are many reasons that this is a great time to reboot...and the reboot has already begun.
Why is it a good time?
Probably the biggest reason it is time to reboot, for me, is that on June 30 I completed a 13 year long challenge to run something more than a 5k in all 50 states plus DC. I spent about two months reflecting on that and writing a blog post. But now it is time to set new goals.
Glenda at the end of my 50th state
Another reason is that I am really and truly retired, and that is sinking in. During the summer I didn't feel quite so retired. I have taken summers off before as an academic, but when school started across the country within the last few weeks and I was not a part of it (very much by choice!) I began to realize that the academic year will no longer be the dictator of the rhythm of my life. I am finding that I have to find a new rhythm.
The other thing that has controlled my time for the last many years is the needs of my daughter. Visiting her, making sure she has what she needs and being her extra ears for medical appointments. She had been living in assisted living nearby for a number of years, a really bad string of health issues ended with 6 months in a nursing home much further away...but still close enough to visit a couple of times a week. But things have taken a turn for the better. No ER visits for over 2 months! And late next week she is moving to an adult family care situation where she will have plenty of support, but greater freedom. This is all good news. However the new place is far enough away that visits two to four times a month are more realistic. She will also have someone to go to appointments with her. All good, but it does change the structure of my week.
Melanie and I at the 4th of July parade in Evansville
Finally, while I have a fair number of races left this year, none of them is an "A" race or a super goal race. Those were finished in August when I did the Naperville Tri. I love just doing fun races...but it is good to have a goal race in mind, just to give things a little shape and structure.
What am I doing about it?
I have been in the process of reboot since early August. One of the things that came of that is (yes, another) new coach. I appreciated working with the coaches at Prairie Athletic Tri Team, but I have had in the back of my mind for a long time that I'd love to work with a particular coach I know. When I chose to hire a coach a year ago, I decided to go local. By the time I was ready to change and I thought working at a distance could work, my chosen coach did not have an open slot. But as it happens she had a slot open up in late summer and I decided to go for it.
So, I am now working with C.C. Rowe of WTF Endurance (not to be confused with Wisconsin Triathlon Farm League, with similar initials which is local to me) in Austin, TX. I trained with C.C. at Tough Cookies years ago when we were both athletes in their program. I knew that she had gotten certified as a USAT coach a while ago, but decided to go local...still it was always kind of in the back of my mind that I'd like to work with her. I like the fact that I know her as an athlete and that she has some understanding of chronic health issues (she's worked with other diabetic athletes before, etc). But I LOVE the fact that she is C.C. I like the way she approaches things and love her personality. She "gets" my goals on a different level, and I have no concern about using "sentence enhancers" (you might call them cuss words) when things don't go so well (or sometimes when they go very well). I have been with her for a month now. So far, so good.
In this Tough Cookie pre-race photo CC is in the center standing in a black shirt and I am on the right side in a striped headband
So the next step was to set goals. I set two very general goals at first, two new "quests" if you like. The first of these is to run a race 5k or more in each of the Canadian Provinces (not the territories, at least for now). I've already raced in Ontario and Prince Edward Island so I have a start. The other general goal was to race 5k or more in each county in Wisconsin as a quest to see my home state. So far I have run in 17 of the 72...so there is a ways to go.
But C.C. also suggested that I set some SMART (Specific Measurable Achievable Relevant and Time-Bound) goals for the short, medium and long term. My 3 goals are 1. Gaining more core strength over the winter (measured by the number of reps of certain exercises) 2. Swim a 2:30 hundred regularly in 6 months time 3. Improve my run intervals to 2 minute run/1 minute walk ver a 5 mile distance within a year. It is really helpful to be working on goals like this that will help my running and triathlon, but are not based on going ridiculously fast on increasing long distances. I recommend a similar goal setting exercise for all athletes.
Choosing "A" races was harder, but I have finally done it. The difficulty came because I didn't want to add distance. I want to be slightly faster and more comfortable (even recognizing that discomfort is necessary). Typically I have a Spring and Fall running race and 1-2 triathlons in the summer, and sometimes a shorter fall race if I can find one. I race much more, of course, but the rest are done as training runs or just for fun. So for 2020, I am planning an 8K in Chicago on March 22nd as my Spring race, and the Mackinac Island 8 miler in September as my Fall race. For Triathlon I have decided on a repeat of the Naperville Sprint Tri in August as my number 1 race. I also plan to do a small Tri in Marshall, IL as a kick off and a super sprint in North Carolina in October to cap the season
Shockingly though, life is not all training and racing...and I am finding that I need to find new structures in my life now that I am not working. I have some ideas that I am pursuing, but I am aware that I need to make room for reflection. So part of my reboot is making time for mindfulness and maybe even meditation.
I'm eager to see what's next.
