That was one of my fathers mantras. I heard it a lot. Unfortunately I don't think he often thought I was living up to the cliche. He was probably right. I was kind of lazy!
I still don't give of my best at all times, but I think that in my old age I'm learning to make more of a habit of it. Of course no one but me knows what my best is, and as such only I can be my judge.
Today I think I did my best, although it didn't meet the standard I was striving for.
Once again the program called for an escalation of intensity and once again I couldn't pull it off. The workout was the same as the one of 8 days ago except that the rest intervals were shorter. It called for 6 repetitions of 251 watts with 2 minutes rest. I survived the first one, and then the remaining 5 finished at 245, 220, 203, 210, and finally 230 respectively.
Was it my best? Could I have squeezed out a few more watts? Probably yes. And yet I think ones best always had to be kept in perspective. If the life of someone important depended on my workout today I'm 100% sure I could have done the whole thing. Fortunately that wasn't the case, and so I'm still content with my effort. It hurt like hell, and yet you can see that I picked it up for the last 2 reps.
So in summary....I'm good with that!
But I can't leave you today without at least a few words about the Boston marathon. It occurred to me to wonder if there is a person or persons out there somewhere who feel like they did their best. Is this person happy with the 3 people they slaughtered, and the countless others they mutilated, or are they questioning their preparation and work ethic? Did they go to sleep peacefully last night secure in the knowledge of their success, or are they thinking of doing better next time?
I know for the vast majority of people the actions of this person or persons is mind boggling but I think that there is an added little element of shock for people who have personally experienced the wonders of the marathon. Roo and I have both been in a funk all day and as I analyze it I think it's probably because as runners we've taken the thing a bit personally. You have to have known the mystique of the marathon to know how special it is, and for some maniac to turn it into a war zone just feels so demoralizing. But...... that's probably exactly what the bomber had in mind eh?
My prayers go out to all those runners and supporters who were actually there, but especially for those who lost their lives, or those who have been maimed for life.
Love
Peter
I still don't give of my best at all times, but I think that in my old age I'm learning to make more of a habit of it. Of course no one but me knows what my best is, and as such only I can be my judge.
Today I think I did my best, although it didn't meet the standard I was striving for.
Once again the program called for an escalation of intensity and once again I couldn't pull it off. The workout was the same as the one of 8 days ago except that the rest intervals were shorter. It called for 6 repetitions of 251 watts with 2 minutes rest. I survived the first one, and then the remaining 5 finished at 245, 220, 203, 210, and finally 230 respectively.
Was it my best? Could I have squeezed out a few more watts? Probably yes. And yet I think ones best always had to be kept in perspective. If the life of someone important depended on my workout today I'm 100% sure I could have done the whole thing. Fortunately that wasn't the case, and so I'm still content with my effort. It hurt like hell, and yet you can see that I picked it up for the last 2 reps.
So in summary....I'm good with that!
But I can't leave you today without at least a few words about the Boston marathon. It occurred to me to wonder if there is a person or persons out there somewhere who feel like they did their best. Is this person happy with the 3 people they slaughtered, and the countless others they mutilated, or are they questioning their preparation and work ethic? Did they go to sleep peacefully last night secure in the knowledge of their success, or are they thinking of doing better next time?
I know for the vast majority of people the actions of this person or persons is mind boggling but I think that there is an added little element of shock for people who have personally experienced the wonders of the marathon. Roo and I have both been in a funk all day and as I analyze it I think it's probably because as runners we've taken the thing a bit personally. You have to have known the mystique of the marathon to know how special it is, and for some maniac to turn it into a war zone just feels so demoralizing. But...... that's probably exactly what the bomber had in mind eh?
My prayers go out to all those runners and supporters who were actually there, but especially for those who lost their lives, or those who have been maimed for life.
Love
Peter
No comments:
Post a Comment