After they came up with the idea, they got together and drove the route, checking out the grades of the hills, the size of the bike lanes and road shoulders, the conditions of the roads. They have been going to spin classes, going on ever longer training rides (Zac, our son, in Monterey and Tom here in the Pleasanton Tri-Valley area.) They have been doing a lot of hill climbing and talking about their nutrition and tuning up their bikes. They checked the weather and the winds and their equipment and their maps and on and on. It has been quite a project.
We arrived at the meeting place in Santa Cruz at 8am and they were on the road by 8:30. I hopped in the car and went up the road about 12 miles or so to surprise them at the top of one of the smaller hills by waving a big colorful rainbow flag we have - like it was the Tour de France.
They thought it was pretty funny, but Tom was not looking too happy. He was cold and he said his legs were feeling dead. They rested a few minutes and pushed on. I stayed and had some breakfast and then went on down the road, but after about 6 more miles I saw them on the side of the road again - so I knew something was wrong. Tom was feeling sick. We put his bike in the car and he wrapped himself in a blanket and dropped off to sleep as I went down the road to the next rest stop and Zac rode on alone.
The rest of the day, Zac rode alone and Tom just felt terrible. Terrible because he was sick and also because he had put so much time and energy into training for this and now Zac was out there alone.
And isn't this how we feel when we fail to live up to our diet and exercise plans? We feel like everything we have done has been a waste - how silly that is. Of course it isn't a waste! Everything we have done hasn't been for just one day. It is for the many, many days on our bikes and in our lives. All the training just makes us ready for more challenges, it doesn't just disappear immediately - we can keep building on it, getting better and stronger.
That's what I told Tom and that's what I keep telling myself every time I skip a few days at the gym or go over on my calories - it is a long term thing, not about just one day.
3 comments:
I'm really sorry that Tom was sick and unable to finish the ride.
You're right, it is just one day. There will be others. And that's also an excellent approach to take toward your/my goal of living healthier and losing weight.
I had planned to run yesterday, but the temps were already close to 90 (with 101 predicted) when I got up. I decided to not run and instead work on projects inside my air conditioned house. No, it wasn't my plan and yes it threw my schedule off a bit, but that's okay. I'll run today instead.
What a great lesson to come from this story! Thank you for sharing it. And 100 miles! My butt hurts just thinking about it.
Oh, I can just imagine (and understand) how let down Tom feels, but he (and we) need to keep your good advice in mind. It reminds me of one of my favorite quotes: "The journey IS the reward." Tom may not have completed his century ride (yet) but he trained rigorously and diligently and THAT alone is an amazing accomplishment! (As are the pounds adding up in your sidebar!)
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