My best Ironman bike finish was 7 hours and 15 minutes. That’s an average pace of 15.3 miles per hour. That was back in 2014.

(Wasn’t that the race where you almost passed out from dehydration?)

Yes…conversation for another time.

So when I got up this past week at 3:00 in the morning and only average 13 miles per hour for an hour on the bike I was disheartened.

(Maybe it’s because you got up at 3:00 in the morning).

I wake up at 3:00 or 4:00 in the morning even if I don’t do workouts.

(If you don’t do workouts, what do you do at 3:00 or 4:00 in the morning?)

I work on my articles for the Jewish Link.

Anyway…I was disheartened. Then I stepped back and put it in perspective. I am just beginning to train again on the bike.

I have not done an actual bike workout in the last eight weeks. Between marathon training and the end of triathlon season I took a break.

(You?)

Every fall I run the NYC Marathon. Between that, work and Jewish holidays, bike training grinds to a halt.

(“Grinds”, I see what you did there.)

Are you going to let me finish my story?

(My bad.)

This slow ride is the beginning, not the end. Perspective is needed.

It’s easy to look at an individual workout and think it is the indicator of how the coming season will play out.

I have a full six months of workouts before me. Plenty of time to get back to where I have been.

Same could be said for last year. This is very common among triathletes. If my workout isn’t faster than my last workout, I’m losing ground.

It’s not about losing or gaining ground, it’s about building. Like all things of value, it takes time and persistence. It takes patience, because you can’t see the results in just one workout. You have to trust what you can’t see.

(So what are you training for in 2019?)

You have to wait and see…

By David Roher

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