For the last year I seem to have been on a journey of stepping up to the bar, doing things that I never thought I could do. Last year my greatest achievement was to complete a 60 mile bike ride for Against Breast Cancer. On Sunday I did my first off road duathlon. It was a one mile run, a five mile bike ride followed by another one mile run. It was over rough woodland terrain and was hard as hell. When we started the run, it was agonising to watch all the younger fitter people hurtling off into the woods. But I knew, after only six week of running training, that I was not going to be up there with the front runners.
So I settled into a rhythm and padded round. 13 minutes later I was mounting up on my bike, expecting some relief from running and not actually getting it! The start was easy, all along flat polo grounds, and then along hardcore woodland tracks. But the last 11/2 miles was purgatory. The ride was mud, dirty, wet, deep and disgustingly sticky mud. Cycling was almost impossible. Getting off and walking the bike wasn't much easier, but most people had to resort to this in places.
At the end of five miles {39 minutes} I started off on my last run. Hello! Who has stolen my legs? I had little feeling below the waist, apart from the sensation of two extremely heavy dead weights attached to my hips. I trundled round, barely raising one foot in front of the other. Slugs laughed at me as I slithered and slid round the woods. But, eventually - 15 minutes later - I reached the finish line. People cheered and clapped, even though they didn't know me. They must have known how hard it was!
I finished 50 out of 56 women, but was one of the oldest in the group. Despite my low position, I was proud of myself. I had raised the bar and now can only get better.
It never fails to amaze me how my physical challenges always have an effect on me emotionally. I tackled the start of the week with some gusto, feeling better than ever and with a sense of certainty for the success of my new projects.
I don't think that we can ever underestimate how much our bodies influence our minds, and vice verse. Worth thinking about eh?
Jan
Tel: 0800 643 3320
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment