There were a few goals that I considered setting but elected not to.
The first of these "ungoals" was setting some amount of annual mileage. I took a look at TrainingPeaks and it said in 2009 that I biked 2192 miles (a mix of trainer and on the road), ran 455 miles, and swam for just under 50 hours. It is hard to gage these numbers since I missed a bunch of time due to various injuries, some more impactful than others (an unstated goal is to not get hit by a car again). My inkling is that all the distances will go up and the ratio will change slightly in favor of little more in the run and swim categories even though bike will still win (by a lot). I'll track the mileage this year but the grand total at year end should be "enough." What numbers are "enough?" Thinking about this will only get me into trouble so I'll leave that to CoachBikeMike.
The second of these ungoals relates to swimming. Swimming is more frequency based rather than distance based. I'd love to have 3 swims a week but I figure that will shake itself out as time goes by so it doesn't warrant obsessing on it. I'm not a good swimmer. I'm probably an OK swimmer but if invest a ton of time at it I'll be.......still not a good swimmer. I may cut a few seconds off my swim time but in the scale of things, this isn't a big deal. If I can get through the swim without any additional exertion than now, that would be great but real triathlon race improvement should come from the bike and run.
The last ungoal has to do with my blog. During last year I posted 125 blog entries. That is a little frightening to me since I really didn't have any expectations of what I would do and what I would get out of blogging. For years in school I was told that writing was one of my weaknesses. Then magically people began to say I wrote well. I still think I often write unintelligently and am amazed when something I write actually makes sense (somewhat like monkeys coming up with Hamlet - OK maybe not that bad but at least like monkeys coming up with the script for an infomercial). That hasn't stopped me yet and this blog seems to be taking on a bit of a life of its own. I've gotten more that I expected to out of the blog but I don't want to set any bloggy goals on content, followers (thank you to the current 19 formal followers), comments (although always welcome), and frequency. This way the drivel that comes from my mind to my fingers to the screen can flow uninterrupted. Is that a blessing or a curse? Only time will tell.
The first of these "ungoals" was setting some amount of annual mileage. I took a look at TrainingPeaks and it said in 2009 that I biked 2192 miles (a mix of trainer and on the road), ran 455 miles, and swam for just under 50 hours. It is hard to gage these numbers since I missed a bunch of time due to various injuries, some more impactful than others (an unstated goal is to not get hit by a car again). My inkling is that all the distances will go up and the ratio will change slightly in favor of little more in the run and swim categories even though bike will still win (by a lot). I'll track the mileage this year but the grand total at year end should be "enough." What numbers are "enough?" Thinking about this will only get me into trouble so I'll leave that to CoachBikeMike.
The second of these ungoals relates to swimming. Swimming is more frequency based rather than distance based. I'd love to have 3 swims a week but I figure that will shake itself out as time goes by so it doesn't warrant obsessing on it. I'm not a good swimmer. I'm probably an OK swimmer but if invest a ton of time at it I'll be.......still not a good swimmer. I may cut a few seconds off my swim time but in the scale of things, this isn't a big deal. If I can get through the swim without any additional exertion than now, that would be great but real triathlon race improvement should come from the bike and run.
The last ungoal has to do with my blog. During last year I posted 125 blog entries. That is a little frightening to me since I really didn't have any expectations of what I would do and what I would get out of blogging. For years in school I was told that writing was one of my weaknesses. Then magically people began to say I wrote well. I still think I often write unintelligently and am amazed when something I write actually makes sense (somewhat like monkeys coming up with Hamlet - OK maybe not that bad but at least like monkeys coming up with the script for an infomercial). That hasn't stopped me yet and this blog seems to be taking on a bit of a life of its own. I've gotten more that I expected to out of the blog but I don't want to set any bloggy goals on content, followers (thank you to the current 19 formal followers), comments (although always welcome), and frequency. This way the drivel that comes from my mind to my fingers to the screen can flow uninterrupted. Is that a blessing or a curse? Only time will tell.
7 comments:
Joe,
I love your blog and look forward to each and every entry. It always gives me something to think about, smile about, laugh at, etc.. Your successes inspire me, your struggles are human and real. You are a triathlete that I can relate to. And you are a great athlete Joe. Keep up the fight in 2010!
Got this via email from Vickie:
We probably have at least one thing in common: getting hit by a car. Not sure how serious your injuries were, but if you have come back from that, that's a huge step in succeeding. A thought on swimming frequency. I did my first IM last year so started the year with a 3 x a week frequency in all 3 sports. While I didn't find myself getting much faster in swimming either, what the frequency did do was make it much easier to transition to the bike, which overall then made me stronger. When I didn't start the bike already exhausted, I had more energy left on the run as well, and finally PRd on an olympic distance tri. So keep it up, even if you don't want to, especially if you have any plans to do any tri longer than a sprint.
Metropolitan fans must stick together....Now if we could just get another arm....Say it with me...2010 NL East Champs!
Thanks for the kind comment on my anniversary post today.
And I say, just do what feels right as far as blogging goes. I write when I feel like it, instead of feeling forced to do it each day.
check out the Total Immersion swimming products on amazon. I just picked up the book and 2 dvd's about freestyle and open water swimming. I really like the format that they preach. it's easy to understand and can easily have a big impact on your swimming. including getting me to like it more. heck, i just did a mile over lunch today. in the water.
go mets!
Looking forward to seeing all that you accomplishing and your kicking 2010's butt! Your comeback is amazing.... keep it up!
btw, thought I was already a follower, but now for sure I am! :D
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