Last Woman Standing

Somehow around here I suddenly became the last woman standing. I will even stand longer than Grimm this season. Suddenly I look around me and everyone is kicking back. Hell the Train-This athletes have even declared a poker night. POKER?

Upon reception of my invitation I had to declare "I am training for the Ironman."

Confession; I don't know how to play Poker. I don't know how to play Euchre (or spell it), and (sit down for this one...) I don't even know how to play solitaire!

And for that matter the only video games I have played have been on an Atari. Once as a lifeguard I learned how to play Dr. Mario Brothers and I played it until I dreamt about it (It was a rainy summer). And I decided that was not the way I wanted to live.

The truth of the matter is..... I don't want to be playing poker right now. Summer has been hanging out with me well into the months it should have left me behind. The sun has been shining, my cyclist tan is really prominent.... and right now I want to do the Ironman. Again.

"Didn't you just do the Ironman?" Carly asked me yesterday. Carly is one of my fellow yoga teachers at Breathe. I admitted, yes I did. "how many of those things should you do in a year?"

I didn't know what to say. One? Two? Or check me into the R Wing at Strong Memorial Hospital?

Later in the day I asked my coach "Have I run far enough?" And I would have loved to have been there for that reaction. Have I run far enough? Ten weeks ago I did Ironman Lake Placid. How have I forgotten that? It's not like at the end of that day the slate was wiped clean and the training clock rolled back to zero.

But I don't feel like I mentally or physically just did an Ironman 10 weeks ago. I feel so good. That credit goes to Coach T. He masterfully structured a plan that brought me through an Ironman recovery (for an Ironman he did not train me for), to a run focus, to pacing and nutrition focus.... to a whole lotta focus.

"What's different this time?" Kitima asked me this past weekend.

"Everything" I told her.

At the starting line of IMLP it had been 4 years since I had done an Ironman. And while things didn't fall into place perfectly I had a great race. Coach pulled me out of races since then that I'd otherwise would have done. He essentially has helped me fine tune everything.

Which makes me so very excited for next season.

Which makes me hesitate to ask Coach T the next question, because I know what the answers are. I want to know how much time I will take off after IMFL?

And I know the answers. He will first tell me to take this one step at a time. No thinking beyond November 3rd. In fact no thinking beyond Nov 5th when I come home. Nov 4th will be for tanning.

Then it will be a minimum of four weeks off. Minimum. I know that. I will fight it but I know it, and I shall obey. I will fill the time with nothing but swimming and yoga.

It feels good to be the last woman standing. It feels good to be where I am at right here and right now. While I debated even doing Ironman Florida.... I know that I am right where I need to be.

:-) mary