The Struggle

I've mentioned in previous posts that the actual training is the easy part of the process. It's everything else that goes into it that is difficult. I mentioned things like preparation, time management, eating etc... These items are non issues when compared to dealing with an injury this close to race time (92 days and counting).

It is not so much the physical pain associated with the injury, of which there has been plenty. But more so the daily psychological struggle that goes along with it. The first days with pain and uncertainty. This was followed by what I'll refer to as the ego period. The ego period goes something like this....I have been through all of this there is no way I am going to let something as little as a toe slow me down. This period took place on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. I powered through workouts and hobbled around the rest of the day.

Thursday morning I woke up to find that the pain was almost completely gone. In light of this I decided to take the day off (50 minute bike and 45 minute swim) and give a little extra healing time.

This morning I had just a short swim of 45 minutes. Tomorrow the schedule calls for 170 min bike, 40 minute run and a 30 minute swim....the workouts are the easy part.

Should I go all out or should I hold back? Will the injury flare up during the workout? Will I handle the workout fine only to wake up Sunday with a serious problem (as I did last weekend)? Will the injury linger and ultimately impact my ability to train the rest of the way or even compete on November 7?

Keep in mind I am not saying that I am consumed with these thoughts but rather I fluctuate between moments of confidence and moments of extreme doubt. Time will tell what the future holds but in the meantime I look forward to my easy time tomorrow (the 4 hours of training)....it's the other time that I can do without.