Road to Recovery....

....is slowly coming to an end for this little lady.

Since my tonsilectomy surgery on the 5th April, I have really done nothing but sleep, eat, play with my little pup, take some more meds (which make me drowsy) and I fall back to sleep. I had the entire Easter weekend and a whole week of work to recover and have done the following:

• Cleaned my bikes - good old squeeky, my Felt to sell and my Wilier (ready for winter rides)
• Read 4 books on the iPad (Kindle App)- Chrissy Wellington's and The Hunger Games Trilogy (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire and Mokingjay)
• Completed 95% of my tax return document gathering task for 2009-2010 financial year. Yeah I know, its bad and I dont know why I dont do them earlier, they are just so low on my to do list.
• Walked the dog on a daily basis (after day 4 of recovery)

Little Lucy - She is 10 years old but weighs 2kg and still looks like a pup

• Cleaned the loungeroom (after watching Hoarders, a TV show - it kind of freaked me out)
• Reflected (big time).

Reflection
I have looked back on my past performances and realise why my times (although have improved due to my fitness levels) have not been fast enough to move up to even the middle of the age group. I have no grunt! I am still in the mindset of completing the distances (thats it) and conserving enough energy until the end. I have done 2 seasons of sprints with the added Olympic distance races in 2011/2012 but it has gone to a point where I must no longer participate in them but I must actually compete or race.

I don't have a competitive personality. I don't like competitions/awards unless I am sure that I will win. This is why I enter in awards for work because due to the contributions I have made in my work industry which has lead me to win several awards over the past few years. I have never been an athletic person and this is why I dont race. The reason why I do triathlons is I race against myself, pushing my abilities and setting the benchmark higher for myself. What is the point of comparing yourself against others when:

• You are physically different to others (I personally have short legs, weak core and I hold my fat around my stomach area, not my thighs or butt)
• You have different weakness and strengths to others
• You have good days and bad days (not in sync with others)
• You have illness, injuries or niggles different to others
• You have done more training the days/weeks/months before compared to others

In training, I might pass people (yes, in rare occasions it does happen). This is not because I am out there to compete (and the term SMASH YOU), I am just pushing my own boundaries and setting my own benchmark higher than before. Other people might take this the wrong way and think that all I am doing is competing and beating them but it is not true - all I am doing is pushing my own speed, endurance and pace. This is something which Ollie (our Head Coach) has mentioned (and reminded us) several times in the Tri Alliance team meetings. Don't use squad members as competition, use them as motivators. Motivator is a powerful tool. You may want to pick a few athletes in your squad, knowing that they are better than you but aim to their standard (keeping it all in realistic standards of course, no point is trying to keep up with Usain Bolt), try and keep up with them and use their speed, endurance and pace to improve your own speed, endurance and pace.

What I need to do from this day onwards is to be more competitive and better my times, not just pace along merrily (so all I am doing is finishing a race). I need to get more GRUNT! When I am doing the races, do them like I am racing (to win). I know that I will never win my age group but I need to race like it is the difference between podium and nothing! Every second counts. My Mental Game - is something which I need to work on for the new season.