I'm so glad I finished this and ended smiling!
DISCIPLINE- my one little word for 2014, was a great companion.
SWIM 400 m
time 11:00
The swim was hard. At half way I thought to myself, “I will NEVER do this again!” It was disorienting having so many swimmers around me, all flailing towards the same goal. I found sighting to be nearly impossible. I swam around longer distance swimmers who were going across my path in a different direction. I never found my steady swimming rhythm. Once I found my own place, away from other swimmers, I just put my head down and headed to shore. It was over quickly, but I was so thankful to be out of the water. My goal was to finish under 15 minutes. I did it in 11 minutes, even with all my struggles in the water.
How did discipline help me reach this achievement?
I swam twice a week. I swam early in the morning so I could get the longer distance lanes. I swam in the ocean. I wrote it into my calendar and was committed to the practice.
BIKE 20km
time 59:41
The bike was hard. I didn’t settle into my breathing rhythm right away. I had to stop twice on the hill up to UBC. The hill I normally can get up. My legs cramped up and I needed water. I passed a few people. Many people passed me. It was fun to be encouraged by others and I started talking to people too. While riding, I decided to just give it my all and try to make my goal to do it in under an hour. I was 19 seconds under an hour.
How did discipline help me reach this achievement?
I stopped commuting by car to work and rode my bike everyday instead. I bought rainy day gear so that the rain would not be an excuse for me to not ride. I cycled longer on Saturday mornings even when I didn’t feel like it. I wrote it in my calendar.
RUN 5km
time 40:57
The run was hard. My legs felt heavy, it was really hot, and I felt exhausted the whole way. I had to hold my blood testing kit in my hand because it was too bouncy in my back pocket. I walked for about half the distance. The encouragement from other runners lifted me. There were three bunnies who hopped with me at one point and that helped me run a bit more. My goal was to run 5 km without stopping. I didn’t make this goal. But I sure ran across that finish line! Even the announcer said I had a great smile! I was so happy to finish!
How did discipline help me reach this achievement?
From the end of May on, I ran every other day on my treadmill. I used the Couch-to-5k app to help me build my endurance. Every time I went on the treadmill, I would at least complete 5km, even though every single time it meant some walking. I wrote it in my calendar to remind me of my goal.
I guess I learned that even though something is hard, that I can do it. The whole reason I signed up for this in the first place was to have a goal that would get me moving everyday. Something to help me put discipline into practice.
Now that it's over, I am still being active every day. My next goal is to run a 5 km without walking. So I signed up for a 5 km event on November 16.
