Putting it aside

The weekend of relaxing and taking it easy continued today. We had a bit of fun in the sun and I had a wee paddle race this morning, but other than that the day has been spent solidly recharging batteries and writing programs for people. Very nice. And yes that is a Santa hat, tis the season after all.

The particularly nice thing about the race this morning was that I got to finish it with my daughter out on the water, that is her in the picture above. Very special.

The race this morning was a good reminder that you don't always get to race in the conditions that you want. It is very windy here in Perth at the moment and paddling, like most sports doesn't always react well to high winds. Just like triathlon, these difficult conditions can make for some pretty challenging racing. However, when faced with tough conditions the two choices are complaining and stressing about them, or simply putting your head down and getting on with it. 

While putting your head down and getting on with it isn't always easy, I managed to do it today. One of the tricks to doing so that I find it really focusing on the moment and putting the external factors out of your mind. One more step, one more stroke, one more mile. Ignore the wind and the rain and the heat and just keep doing what you know you need to do. Stick to the intensity that you know you need, follow your nutrition plan and execute, put aside the frustration etc and stay in the moment. It can be pretty hard to do, and I admit I am not always successful at it, but if you get it right it can be possible to have a good day even on the worst days.