Back to a normal routine

It's been about two weeks since my dad's passing, and two weeks since Jeff (my husband), Cheddar, and I have been home. And, TWO WEEKS WITHOUT TRAINING!

When we drove down to California I had planned to continue training knowing that I would have down time, as the point was to just be with family...no other plans. I knew I couldn't swim as there's no community pool in the hot central valley that's indoors and open during winter, or even outdoor and heated (maybe if I searched really hard, but no time for that). I did however pack a bag with my running and biking gear, when last minute Jeff convinced me not to bring my bike as it would be traveling a good ole 1,004 miles on the rack. So then it was just running. I ran once.

Now that we're back home, back to work, and nothing special is going on, life has resumed as before and so has training. My athletic ability is definitely less than what it was which makes sense as not only did I take a two-week break, I also spent a few days worth in the car. But, that just means that I have to give it my all, no excuses, whining, or hesitations because my training time is starting to increase with each session now.

Biking is easy. The gears just get adjusted to what is needed to climb the hill. What used to be a 2/1 gears for my first hill and 2/2 gears for the second hill to get to work is now a 1/1 and 2/1 to 1/1. No worries, right now the focus is increasing time, my leg muscles will slowly build themselves back up on their own.

Swimming is swimming. I was starting brand new and I am still new.

Running ::sigh:: I love running (I also love to sleep and eat, and...). It's what I've been doing the longest which is why it's harder, at least for me, when my athleticism takes a step back. Yesterday was my first run, and my body was fully aware of how that hill was harder, the whole run was slower, and my enjoyment meter was low. While I may be making excuses, there were a lot of things different on my run; my time was increased by 5 minutes for a total of 35min., Cheddar was not with me, it's now dark when I start, and a good 15min. into it I got emotional and shed a few tears.

All in all, it's good to be home.                     Oh, and thank you everyone for all the love and support.