Quick little update....

For some reason I just haven't found the motivation yet to write up the bike and run race reports from Mont Tremblant yet. I even haven't written up a 2 mile swim race report I did in early August. They will get done. I have the time to write them, just no motivation.

I guess I had such a satisfying race at Mont Tremblant that I don't feel like I should write a race report. They will get written.

Now that I am ~10 days post Ironman, MAN does life feel liberating right now! I have ran 3 times, done leg strength 2X, biked easy twice, and otherwise have sat on my ass doing a whole lot of nothing.

AND.IT.FEELS.GOOD.

I have written about this in the past, and I will write about it again. Most of my motivation through the first 4 years of my triathlon "career" have been all about discovering new distances and the excitement associated with that.

Now that I have experienced every "standard" distance (basically NON ultra distances...) more than once, that "excitement" had and has and still does continue to wain.

It is all about reprioritizing my goals in this hobby. I think this is why I am not as enthusiastic about writing another race report. I remember I couldn't WAIT to write up race reports because it was either a new distance, new venue, or new PR.

Those days are mostly gone and its now, "How did I place?"

And, for the first time I am NOT chomping at the bit for an aggressive Fall running race campaign. Those three runs I have done have been for 30 mins each, at a 9:14, 9:06, 8:58 pace. Slow, yes. And on two of those runs, I felt some pain in my left knee.

Yes, that SAME left knee. It wasn't bad. It was subtle. But it freaks me out! And recall this is how it started last year after Placid.

So! No more running. No idea how this is happening a second time, but unlike last time, I am NOT going to run. I am going to do my PT exercises until this thing goes away.

Which brings me to some goals I have for this Fall "off season". Knee permitting, I would like to break the 20 and 40 minute barriers in the 5K and 10K. I have broken 20 twice before, but unofficially as part of a 4 miler and 10K. I would like to have an "official" sub 20 though.

Otherwise, I want to do strength training. And lots of it. Strengthening my legs brought me back from injury last Fall, brought me back faster than ever before, kept injury at bay, and helped me recover a LOT faster.

I know a lot of people say "strength training has no place in triathlon. You should be spending that time doing S/B/R instead..." But I don't buy it. My coach said to me last winter:

"Jon, Ironman isn't all about endurance. It is about strength. At hour 9 you will thank yourself for doing all of that strength training because that is the time when your body starts to fall apart. Strength training will hold your body up, allowing your endurance to do its thing."

I didn't know what to say at first, but at exactly 9 hours (or at ~13.1 miles into my marathon), my form was still great. I felt great! I even powered up the last two hills of the marathon! I owe it all to strength. Not long run training. I only ran 2.5 hours, or 17 miles as my longest run the ENTIRE season.

I also want to get leaner. I put on weight this season. I was as heavy as I was 2 years ago, and yet I was still PR-ing everything this season. (Again, thank you strength!) but if I can get leaner, that is less gravity working against me going up hills on the bike and running in general.

Which brings me to my next point: DIET. My diet the last 3-4 months SUCKED. I haven't cook myself a healthy dinner since April, I think. I basically lived off of high glycemic cereal to fuel my workouts and deal with stress while working overtime at work. I felt.just.gross.and.disgusting.

Already within the last 10 days I haven't touched cereal once. I have eaten 4 slices of bread total. I have eaten quinoa, black beans, lots of avocado, TONS of green things, lots of fruit, and just plain old healthy things. I can already feel my blood sugar levels coming back down from the stratosphere. I feel "whole again".

I have been craving this feeling all season long, and I finally have it! Work has calmed down. The weather is getting nice. I feel NO pressure to train. Hell! I am no longer training. I am *gasp* working out, or even *gasp* jogging! (sorry folks, won't be running in place at "don't cross" signals)

To a wonderful, STRESS FREE Fall!