Let the Anxiety Begin

It's 10 days until go time and I always feel like I haven't done enough at this point before the race. Normally I'm really cool and relaxed the day or two before but now is when all the pre-race questions and doubts creep up. I know I've trained harder for this race than ever before, I know I've put in countless hours in the pool, riding the road, and running the trails but you still ask yourself; what else could I have done? The only thing I could think of would mean quitting my job and becoming a full-time triathlete but that just isn't possible nor really what I want to do.

I love this sport because of how I feel from training and the enjoyment I get out of living a healthy lifestyle. I think if it was my full-time job I would still enjoy it but training would become more of a chore and I would probably burn-out. Amber and I started training for this race in October and everyday since then Louisville has been in the back of my mind as my goal race this year. Some of what will happen out there is out of my control, weather (heat and humidity are brutal there), course profile, other athletes being too aggressive. All I can do is prepare as much as I possibly can and give everything I got on the day.

I know all I need to do now is rest and fully recover but the nerves sometimes get the better of me and I feel like I need to keep training hard. I'm conscious of not overdoing it and I've slowed down on any training I've been doing. Yesterday was an easy 3km swim in the morning which felt really good, and easy one hour spin in the evening while watching last year's IM world championship. I need to compete there this October, it's going to be a life goal checked off.