Never as bad

Today's post ended up being strangely philosophical. Not sure why, it just came out that way and I decided to not get in the way. Sorry if it came out as a bunch of waffley garbage though. Anyway, read away.

Today has been a good example of how things are rarely as bad as you think they will be.

I was not looking forward to today at all. Perhaps it was just the usual Monday blues. I know I certainly had some things at work that I wasn't at all enthused about. Whatever the reason, heading in I was not keen. However, here I am most of the way through the day and so far the world hasn't exploded and my day has not reduced me to tears. In fact the day has gone reasonably okay (so far). The things I wasn't really excited about at work have gone okay and I have made this far intact. To paraphrase The Matrix, we are not out yet. But so far the day has gone nicely. Sometimes the bad stuff just doesn't happen.

I have found though that work related stress is one area of not training that I could do with out. Training is usually a big stress relief for me, a disconnect and without it I find work playing on my mind more than I would like. I would love to not have to work and just train full time, but I long ago accepted that I wouldn't be able to do that. I just have too many financial obligations. Training gives me something else to occupy my mind though. Lets me be something other than my job and I miss that.

I have said before that I think people sometimes go too far with Triathlon, it becomes their whole identity, who they are. However, far more people become their jobs. Their life revolves around it. The old cliche of wake up, eat, go to work, come home, eat, sleep, die I think holds true for a lot of people. More than it should really. One of the reasons that I think I will always do sport in some capacity is because I can't stand the thought of being that person. It has always scared the bejesus out of me actually. The times I haven't been doing exercise and have just worked during my days I have got through about six months and thought, 'What' 'Is that it' ' that's the rest of my life?' I think that is why I have never successfully stayed inactive for long.

Thinking about it, I guess most people have something like that in their lives. My wife has music and we both have our kids. Presumably other people have other things that give them some meaning hobbies and pass times that are their passion. I must admit I am guilty of occasionally feeling smugly superior about the fact that I have something else in my life other than work. I think I even did it in the paragraph above. However, as I write this I realise that perhaps I have been too quick to judge.

That realistation makes me feel a bit better, because it tells me that when the time comes that I no longer feel the desire to exercise obsessively it won't necessarily mean that my life will be over, that my life will cease to have meaning (outside of my family obviously). It give me confidence that I will find other things to fill my interest and passion outside of work. Other people do and that means I can too. That is a nice thought. Particularly for a Monday.