Sometimes the triathlon gods (small g) like to send subtle messages.
You can listen and obey, or you can stubbornly keep going and pay the price.
So I got up way early to go to my first a.m. masters class in a few months. Now that I’m about 20 weeks out from my next IM, I'm starting to get a bit more serious about my training.
I had almost forgotten how hard it is to jump out of a warm bed into a cold pool. In fact, I probably have forgotten since when I arrived at the health club, I arrived sans swim gear.
Don’t you hate it when you spend all that mental energy to just get your butt out of bed and to the pool, only to get there and not be able to swim? It is the worst of both worlds. Not only do you miss your workout, but you also miss that really great early morning sleep.
So now I’m both tired and pissed-off at myself. I plop down on the bench and think about my options. I could go to the lost and found and “borrow” a swimsuit and goggles from the lost pile. This option appeals to me until remember the secret underground swimsuit Mafia at my health club.
I can’t prove this, but I believe that someone or some group is trafficking in used swimsuits at my club. Too many times I have forgotten my blue Speedo swimsuit in the locker room only to have it not end up in the lost and found. Low and behold a few weeks later there is some big guy in the lane next wearing a slightly used blue Speedo. Is it my Speedo? I have no way of proving it except to give him one of those long Larry David looks from Curb Your Enthusiasm. And since I’m usually not wearing my glasses when I swim, I can never really see the other guy’s reaction.
Needless to say, the thought of some big guy giving one of these looks this morning as I’m wearing a “borrowed” lost and found swimsuit fills me with dread. Besides it would sort of be like borrowing anonymous used underwear and that is just not my style…no matter how much chlorine is in the water.
Just as I’m about to head home I notice that I have my running gear in my bag. So if you can’t swim, you might as well run, I figure and head up to the treadmills.
My luck has changed. I’m just in time and on the right day for the morning treadmill speed workout. My club has a coached group treadmill speed workout that meets twice a week. The coach reserves a small number of treadmills and teaches the workout as a group.
My lucky day, I think to myself, as there is one treadmill open. Coach Mo says I’m welcome to join the group and I jump on the treadmill feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. Maybe I didn’t waste my morning after all? About 5 minutes into the warm up the treadmill shudders, burps and stops. The display reads “Code 45.”
Code 45…what the hell is a Code 45? Is it some secret code that means “this dude is way to big and heavy for me” or “you know you must be pretty thick that you just don’t listen.”
Coach Mo gives the treadmill a stern look and hits the reset switch. It buzzes back to life with glowing red light glee. I push the start button and increase the speed. When I get past six mph the treadmill shudders, burps and stops and again says “Code 45”
Coach Mo resets it and it dies again just past 6 mph. Now you can’t really do a very speedy speed work out below 6mph so you’d think that I’d get the message. But being a stubborn triathlete I’m now hell bent to get in a work out.
Coach Mo comes to the rescue. He hands me a sheet of printed paper, which has the entire workout on it. You know, how far and fast to go and at what intervals. He suggests that I use the older treadmills on the third floor, which are almost always free, even during the busy morning hours.
So I thank him and head upstairs. And sure enough there are two treadmills available. I pick the less sweaty one (or is it sweated upon one), and dial-up the speed to 8 mph…no problems here and I'm soon sweating and running. About 5 minutes into the workout I increase the speed to 10 mph. At this point I’m really running fast and hard….almost sprinting. My heart is pumping, my legs are working and ground is jumping.
However the triathlon gods are not happy. I have completely ignored their fair warnings and now I must pay the price. Without any warning what so ever, the treadmill comes to a dead stop and completely dies. I’m not talking about a slow and gentle deceleration. This is a dead stop here and now.
I come within an inch of hurling from the treadmill and executing a perfect triple salkow with a double twist off the front of thething. Lucky I just sort of slam into the display bar with a big thud that knocks the wind out of me.
My speed workout is now official done.
I suppose the morale of this lesson is that I need to listen to triathlon gods. I need to take a Code 45 every-so-often. Perhaps we all need a Code 45 every-so-often. As triathletes we tend to be hard driven A types who mean to overcome no matter what the price or situation. It is in our nature to never take “no” as an answer. We will climb every mountain and forge every river. We will accomplish our mission or die trying.
But sometimes I forget that I need to go backwards to move forward. My body needs rest to recover. I need to pay attention to subtle and not so subtle signs and just take a day off. More importantly take a guilt free day off. And that’s what I figure is the real message of a Code 45.
A Code 45 means it is all right to not workout today and especially to not workout today and not feel guilty about it. Or to flip is around, a Code 45 means take a well deserved break and enjoy a no workout, a no guilt day with your favorite friend and favorite wine.
Or it could just mean, “this dude is way too big and heavy for me!” After all the triathlon gods are pretty fickle.