Early withdrawal July 22, 2006
Posted by Niels in : Personal , trackbackI just withdrew from Ironman Wisconsin. I hate giving up, but I saw this coming. Injuries were a large part of the problem. Whenever I tried to push the mileage up, my knees would give out and I’d have to take time off. Even biking, which is supposed to be low impact, tweaked my knee out. Ah, Berkeley hills, I will conquer you yet!
But more than anything else, it came down to time and priorities. I’ve been physically fit all my life, but my social fitness has only recently become a priority. I got hardcore into improving my social skills last November and all the free time I’ve had since has gone into that. I won’t hit my endurance race peak until I’m 35, but improving my social skills benefits me right now.
My final hope for the Ironman was a last-minute push for physical fitness this summer, but my expected free time didn’t materialize. When I registered for the race last fall, I knew I’d be doing a summer internship now. Back then, I equated being in a strange city to spending a lot of time alone. After all, when I spent a summer working in San Diego four years ago I had nothing but free time to exercise, play poker, learn brazilian jiu jitsu, and surf. I didn’t know how to meet people then. Now I’m starting to get pretty good at it. But improvement only comes with practice, and I’ve committed myself to being in the city every weekend, practicing my social skills.
I’m happy with where my life is going, but damn - I hate giving up. I’m still having my bike shipped out here, and I’ll still be exploring the roads around Ossining, but I’ll be taking it a bit easier. Those eight-hour brick workouts do make it tough to bar hop until 4 am. It’s probably for the best. Now I’ll have some time to build up a base level of fitness and develop my stabilizer muscles. The Ironman dream isn’t over - just a little delayed.
Comments»
Excuses are like butts, everyone has them and they all stink!!! ;)
Niels,
I keep on keepin’ on brotha! We believe in you!!!
Awesome mate for giving it a go, keep at it and finish an Ironman another time. Then you can join me in being not only a PUA but an Ironman too!