Bout of depression and a Faux triathlon

I was determined to not become depressed following the unfortunate cancellation of the Capital of Texas Triathlon. After all, and as I am quick to point out to any who will listen, I am casual about marathon, ultra-marathon and even the new dimension of triathlon, not driven like all those “a” personality types.

Unfortunately, if I am more “b” than “a,” I am also a recovering alcoholic and one who knows a few things about manic. So I guess it’s not at all surprising that a dull depression set in for a couple of days following the aborted CapTexTri. My ice cream stash diminished and I neither ran, swam nor biked for several days. I went online to sign up for the Chicago Marathon and found registration already closed and looked at a stack of backburner projects while finding no impetus to pick any of them up. Yep. I was depressed.

During the 12-14 weeks of specific training for the CapTexTri I spent a good bit of time in the pool in addition to logging some cycling miles. Running has taken something of a back seat. All along, I have tested the various combinations of disciplines while never putting the whole package together. I was waiting for D-Day for the ultimate test. Well, D-Day never came and that gets a lot of the blame for not only my depression but I suspect for some down moods amongst all who looked forward to their Memorial Day exams.

Today I decided I really had to take control and snap myself out of the funk. I planned to do it yesterday, but the depression wouldn’t release its grip. So what did I do? I put together my various transition items, clipped my bicycle shoes into the pedals of my bright red Trek, and rode off to the gym. That couple of miles served as a warmup. I backpaddled a lap in the pool as a further warmup and then swam 15 laps with an extra for good measure (and in case I had miscounted). Transition back to the bike was awkward given that I was at the gym at a somewhat busy time. (It was about 7 pm by then.) In no way was this a competitive T1!

Biking was in somewhat heavy traffic down Fredericksburg Road toward Woodlawn Lake. I finally bailed on Fredericksburg and took a less trafficky way to Woodlawn. I would guess I was at about 3 miles when I began laps of Woodlawn Lake, 5 in all for a distance of 7.5 miles. A final 2.25 miles landed me at my front door where I did manage a pretty efficient transition into my running shoes and a final 5 kilometer run.

As I had prepared for the big CapTri I was stumped for an estimated elapsed race time. In the end, I had settled on 2 hours being a roughly rough estimate. And who knows what might have been with the adrenalin flowing and all the competitive juices (which I insist aren’t there). All I can tell you is that today’s faux triathlon took just under 2 hours. The only distance which I could absolutely certify would be the 5k run which was measured by my Nike plus iPod setup. But most important is that this exercise was a great workout, it lifted me out of the funk, and I am sure to sleep well tonight. I would be lying to say I look forward to getting back to my normal work routine, though that is surely part of keeping the depression from returning. But the best antidote will be the return to a good regular workout routine as I continue to scan the horizon for the next big challenge. Congratulations to you if you don’t need an event ahead in order to keep you on track. I am one who works best when there is a race, a goal, a D-Day. I’ll see you at the gym, swimming at the lake, or running and biking the streets of San Antonio. Let’s all stay strong!