The struggle of getting the miles in day after day is no bullshit. I am making a significant investment of my time and am focusing on removing all of my excuses along the way. I regularly travel several days a week for work. I have improved my ability to inject a workout into my days when I’m alone. This week, however, was a different animal. I was gone the whole week at a company meeting. I was also a presenter and actively involved in training a group of new employees. These responsibilities were in addition to the general activities I needed to participate in with my team.
Getting up at 5-5:30 am and running was part of my plan; I brought the clothes and knew the schedule. I did run on two mornings and they were good workouts. The pool at the hotel looked too cloudy and grimy, so I stayed out of that water. However, I have no reason, other than laziness, for avoiding the stationary bike. I just didn’t want to do it. I also undermined myself by choosing to hang out late with my friends and have a few too many drinks. Spending quality time with my work colleagues to build and reinforce our relationships is important to me. I enjoy who I work with and really enjoy getting to know them. Also, part of the corporate game is having the right relationships; they help to get work done and meet goals. In short building professional relationships is both enjoyable and necessary.
On one hand, I don’t feel good about my choices because I didn’t stick to my exercise plan. On the other, I do feel good about spending time with my colleagues. It’s not a great situation, but as far as I can tell, sacrifices must always be made for one thing or another. Nothing is free.
I’m two weeks away from my next race and I’m somewhat concerned that I set myself back. I’ll work to get the most out of my time this upcoming week, then go all-out next Sunday at the One Two Tri III Triathlon.
