32 Weeks till IRONMAN - It prepares me

I LOVE THIS ARTICLE!

It explains so much about why I race.  Thank you for writing this, Megan from 'Run Like a Mother'

Racing Prepares You

24th March 2012 | Megan

I recently raced in a bike race.  As I lined up at the starting line, I looked around at the women that surrounded me.  In their colorful racing kits, chatting amongst themselves; they varied from much younger to younger, from super fit to “happy to start together” and from confident to “happy to hang on”.

This was a criterion style bike style bike race, in which you compete typically in a pack (peloton), unless someone breaks away.  We had to race 22 laps in roller derby fashion, jostling for position as the race progresses until the bell lap when there is a mad sprint for the finish.  The race is very high energy and lasts only 45 minutes, but in that time your heart is racing and your mind has to be spot on.

I am often asked why do I do this race.  Or any race for that matter.  What is the point of competition?    In a previous blog (http://www.runlikeamotherrace.com/out-of-the-box-experiences/) I wrote about being “Out of the Box”, putting yourself in a place of discomfort to grow mentally.  Challenge is something that keeps us sharp, pulls us out what can be an easy, mundane existence.  Challenge can be a  personal, private, internal test or it can be shouted from the roof tops.

It can happen in the same event but have different meanings to different people.  A running race is a great example.  The first timer  just wants the challenge of a finish, the veteran perhaps a Personal Best and the pro, to qualify for another event or milestone.  There they are in the same race, doing the same thing with the same “quality” of a challenge; just a different outcome.

Competing is important on so many levels.  I recently posted,

Racing makes you sharp.

Training builds your strength and endurance physically but most importantly mentally.

We do these things for our own bodies but also to be better for others. There are times when your ability to withstand events will hold those around you.

It’s our way of life

Athletic events provide the opportunity to prepare.  Often times, people will look cross-eyed wondering “Why” you must TRAIN or RACE, what is it all for anyway?  Competition and challenges keep you keen, refocus your efforts on you, which sometimes gets lost.  The ultimate gift as you test yourself, is that you are preparing your mind and body to endure other life events.  During the preparation phase, not only physical but mental stamina is gained.  During the test phase or race, we learn even further the amount of stress we are able to carry mentally and physically.

Most of us have endured awful diagnosis’, divorces, sudden deaths of loved ones or other life events. We have friends and support of family to help us cope.  Eventually though, we have to rely on ourselves, our own strength and toughness to guide us through the difficult time.  Athletics helps to prepare us but additionally can carry us through when something bad happens.

Racing is not for everyone, but it does help your mind and body prepare for the times when the going gets tough.  Putting yourself in a race situation, tests your mind and draws on your soul; no matter the distance or the pace as long as it puts you in out of the box where you are forced to deal with the uncomfortable.  Put yourself in that situation now and you will most certainly draw on it later.