We practiced a few great drills, like one-legged spinning (which is as tough as it sounds), and even simulated scenarios like how to spin and shift your way out of a dropped chain. Needless to say, I was quite content with being stationary and was happy to practice clipping in and out of the pedals without the fear of tipping over while trying to balance.
As an added surprise, I won the honor of this week's Spirit Award (and IronTeam Spirit Cape), recognized for my enthusiasm and fundraising efforts. Thanks for the nomination, Teammates! To date, I have raised over $1,500 in just four weeks. And this is all thanks to YOU! I can't tell you how much your support, generosity & encouragement mean to me. So please know how far each of your dollars has gone ~ and continues to! And for your viewing amusement:
Of course, looming in the back of my mind was this anxiety about removing Lulu from the trainer in about an hour and having to try clipless riding again. As you may recall, my last bout with riding clipless ended in a set of pretty bad falls -- one in particular... which made me incredibly nervous to get back in the saddle again. Yet despite my fears (I was whining on the inside, "Do I really have to?" but forced myself to Iron-Up and just DO IT) Coach Dave assured me that I'd pick it up today. So he set up some cones in the parking lot which he wanted me to ride around, then come to a complete stop at another pair of cones -- where training captains, Tony and Nick, were standing by. If I was about to tip over, Dave said, "the guys would be there to catch me". I can't tell you how freaked out I was. There was just something so traumatizing about the last time I tried to do this that it made it physically difficult to get my feet to push the pedals to even start riding.
But Dave gave me set of really clear instructions, I followed them, and before I knew it, I was riding, fully clipped, both feet in. As I coasted around and did some turns in the parking lot, now it was time to come to a complete stop at those cones. Here was the hard part. I broke it down in my head and I reminded myself not to panic ~ but instead, visualize myself coming to a nice, smooth stop. No falls, no scrapes, no bruises. That this time, I was going to get it right. The guys were all ready to catch me, and low and behold: I stopped. A smooth, gentle stop. I clipped out at the right time, and I didn't tip over! It was a miracle! Quite possibly the most basic and elementary thing for most cyclists, but this was my moment, and I conquered my fear! Coach asked me to try it one more time, and just like the stop before it, my second one was just as smooth. I finally knew what it felt like to clip in and out and NOT fall! Another small step for an Ironbaby but a gigantic step for me!
After our two hours of spinning, we had an hour and a half swim workout. To recount, I used to have so many anxieties about swimming, especially when it came to all these drills, commands by our Coaches to swim several hundred yards without stopping, and being afraid I'd lose all oxygen in my lungs and slowly sink to the bottom. It was during probably my 30th consecutive lap that it occurred to me: Here I am, doing something I was so scared of before. How did this happen? How did I get to this point to where I could swim so far and so long continuously when it used to be something I had such huge fears about? It's the same way I felt once I got the hang of the clips on the bike.
After about a 5+ hour day with the Team, we all celebrated our successful workouts with some lunch and a couple beers at the Marin Brewing Company. A great way to wrap up the day, spend some time with everyone off the trails and out of the pool. And of course, upon arriving back home, I promptly passed out for another 2-hour nap. I don't think I moved in my bed for the entire 2 hours -- just laid in the same exact spot, motionless, out of sheer exhaustion and contentment after such an awesome day.
***
Week #2 Workout Summary
Swim: 3 hours and 30 minutes
Bike: 2 hours and 0 minutes
Run: 2 hours and 0 minutes
Core/Strength: 0 hours and 40 minutes
Total Workout: 7 hours and minutes
Hey Nick and Tony weren't around to catch ME! WTF ;-p Congrats on conquering those pedals. It will become second nature and soon you won't even be thinking about it.
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