So what have I been doing since Ironman???
Our week in Cozumel following the race, we did a whole lot of this:
Since coming home to Calgary, I've kept myself pretty busy. I was telling Adam that the past three days I haven't even sat down on the couch to rest. It's just been go, go go. I've been doing more personal training, gone to some yoga classes, done some upper body and core exercises (legs still aren't ready), spent lots of time with my kids, had a few play dates with friends, baked and delivered Christmas goodies and I've even taken up knitting! My friend taught me how to make the cutest scarves with this really chunky yarn. I love it because I'm filling my life with things that I didn't have as much time for when I was in heavy training. I've been fortunate to adjust back to "normal" life and avoid AIDS (after Ironman depression syndrome), which is apparently a real issue for some people. I think it helps that it's Christmas time.
Good news is that I feel completely at peace about how my race went in Cozumel. I struggled for about a week with feelings of disappointment about my run. On the one hand, I was so proud of myself for carrying on and finishing but on the other hand I felt like kind of a failure. I no longer feel at all like a failure. I feel grateful for the experience, grateful for what I learned from it and grateful for all the generous support and words of kindness from people who have heard or read about my experience. It is so nice to know that such a flawed experience can be an inspiration to many others. I have been so flattered and touched by those who have taken the time to read my experience and have expressed to me how it has touched them in some way. Some have said it has inspired them to want to set a goal with their spouse, others have said that it helps them feel like they can carry on when things get hard and others have wanted to set personal goals of their own. It has helped me learn about what success really means. It does NOT mean that you achieve all your expectations. It means that YOU DON'T GIVE UP!!!! You keep carrying on.
Like I mentioned, we ARE considering signing up for another race. So many factors to consider in making this decision and we are trying to take them all into consideration and even make it a matter or prayer. Of course, training for an Ironman effects our family in a big way, so we are making the decision cautiously. There are some great options for races:
FULL DISTANCE:
Germany (June), Switzerland (July) or Cozumel again (November).
A couple of the races we would really love to participate in, only have foundation spots. This mean that registration costs twice as much and then half goes to charity. Anyone know of any companies that would donate??
HALF DISTANCE:
Boise (June), Calgary (June/July), Miama (October). Somehow Boise doesn't seem like a very exciting destination, compared to the others.
Part of me would like to do another full, so that I can give that marathon another shot. Another part of me is hesitant to get back into those training hours again. We're trying to decide before the end of December because that's when early registration ends for a lot of these races.
Let me know if you have any thoughts on what I should do, or even better if there's anyone out there who wants to train with me. I would LOVE a training buddy. Or I should say, I would love ANOTHER training buddy because of course Adam and I get to do some of our training together.
In other news, I think my toenail is going to fall off, due to trauma to the nail bed from racing.
I realize this post has a lot of pictures of feet. Sorry about that.
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