Everyone has one. You wake up and everything goes wrong the rest of the day. You start off a workout feeling "poopy" and it just doesn't get any better. You're having a great day and all of a sudden 5 things go wrong to turn the day upside down. Well, I had one of those days when it just started off "poopy". I stayed with my parents last night so that I could take them to the airport early this morning. They are off to New Orleans for the weekend to catch a ship for their cruise on Sunday. Now, about my bad day. Last night I had a hard time going to bed and it was late when I finally did fall asleep. The alarm went off at 4:40am but since I went to bed around 11pm I was a bit on the sleepy side. My leg is bothering me again (for the past 3 days) so I've been taking it easy with the cycling. Just walking on the treadmill to keep things stretched out and if it is bursitis in my groin, it feels great to walk and swim. I debated about not riding this morning but after dropping my parents off at the airport I was up and what else would I rather do at 6:30am? Karel was joining the group today for the bridge repeaters (easy day for him) so I had a good incentive to ride with the group. I felt fine during the fist 10 miles of the ride which brought me to the group at CVS. I met up with Ray, Bob and Vince, three of the Gearlink guys. When my groin is bothering me I never know how hard to push so I put my chain in the big ring to give me a bit more power. This was the first time since I got my new Blue that I rode in the big ring and it was nice to slow down my cadence just a bit. I probably could have kept it in the small ring but I just wasn't feeling it. At that point, I was thinking maybe I'm not feeling it at all today. I tried to get those negative thoughts out of my head and I really enjoyed the absolutely beautiful (and hot) morning. Once the ride started, we took turns pulling (3 minutes each) as we rode 2 abreast on the road. I was looking forward to getting on the bridge so I could do my own thing. The plan was 14 bridge repeaters (7 each side) and I felt good starting out. My body felt good, I felt like I had enough energy but I had absolutely no power. I just didn't feel it today. I got lapped by the guys and Karel rode with me for 4 climbs until he joined the other guys who were a bit ahead of me on their 14 climbs. Soon after, I have Karel passing me again like he was riding a flat with the wind at his back. Even though the group was finished and refueling at the gas station, I finished my last 4 climbs solo, with only pedestrians starring at me strangely as I climbed the causeway alone. During the 4 climbs with Karel he asked how i was feeling and I told him I just didn't feel powerful. I was tired since I didn't get a good nights rest and I felt like I was riding with people who weren't in my league. Actually, I am no where in their league. Karel nicely explained that some of the guys power up the climbs too hard and it is the winter and there is no reason to race during this part of the season. Karel was extremely nice about everything, giving me pointers on my pedal stroke and gearing, but my ego was down and I just wanted to complain. I was just frustrated with everything, probably all going back to my leg.
Here is my point to the blog, besides me just complaining about how bad I felt during my morning ride...We all have bad days. Karel has bad days (which means I can almost keep up with him), the Gearlink guys have bad days, the Pro's have bad days and newbies have bad days. I had a bad day and I wanted Karel to just deal with it. Actually, as my fiance, I wanted Karel to just listen to me complain..but who wants to do that??? I tried not to be negative about things but complaining, well, sometimes it's just easier to think out loud. I know it's gotta be tough living with someone who has a bad day. How many times has your significant other, mom/dad/bro/sis, training partner or roommate seen you come home after a bad workout? Or even worse, a bad race??? I know it has happened to everyone and the person (as who feels the effects of the athletes' bad day) just has to deal with it. It's no fun, but it happens. Hopefully you live with someone who is positive, uplifting and understanding. I've tested my skills at cheering Karel up after a tough race or workout but it's hard. Sometimes that person just needs to vent and complain. Karel did a good job of trying to rationalize the situation and letting me know that I'm not slow and he's seeing improvements in my climbing. He said that climbing a causeway is not a climb, it is pure power-something I don't have right now. I guess one two many negative comments came out of my mouth but I was so frustrated about how slow I was today. Here I am, a triathlete who went to Kona and I am getting lapped on a causeway! I know, that is a bad analogy. I know i am the slowest on the team but I really felt like I shouldn't be riding with these guys (and Roberta). I was pretty down on myself during the entire ride and I had a hard time really searching inside of me for a time when I was keeping up with the guys. I could have easily thought about the Wed. night rides when I was making all the loops or finishing a Saturday morning ride with the guys, just before I headed out for a brick run. For some reason, I just couldn't find that inner strength to get positive and I just continued to ride in frustration. Now that I am home and expressing my thoughts as I write (which I love to do) I hope that all the people out there who have bad days, find that inner strength to bounce back the next day. I should have listened to Karel and some of the other guys (who knew I was having a bad day) and just ignored my flat ego. Errrr. It was a great morning to ride, I got in 55 miles w/ 14 bridge repeaters and I was able to spend some time with my fast training partners. But when you have a bad day, it is just so frustrating when you just can't change the scenario. Lesson learned: Deal with the bad days quickly, move on in a positive manner and realize that YOUR bad day could be someone's BEST day.
