Reaching Your Potential

I changed the title of my blog since Ironman Florida is over, I figured I would keep this going. I'm putting the finishing touches on my IMFL race report. I warn you that its long....oh well.

I was just thinking about the concept of performance and potential in sport. As amateurs, we all come in all shapes and sizes. Take triathlon for example, while racing at Ironman Florida, I witnessed athletes racing in all shapes and sizes. Granted, elite triathletes tend to be much smaller, leaner athletes but the sport attracts everyone which is a great thing. Will I ever be one of the fastest people in a triathlon? Highly unlikely but you never know. A few years ago, I would say never. I don't fit the mold to go really fast. I have seen some great athletes who are in great shape, lean, and have trained their asses off but they get to big races and have sub-par performances. They may still be really fast but they didn't reach their potential. There are many reasons why this could be. What do you think is more rewarding? Going fast but not reaching your potential or going slower but reaching your potential? After racing IMFL, I think I reached my potential. I exceeded my expectations and that was an incredibly rewarding feeling. I just raced in Florida with a local CT triathlete. He had a good race but didn't meet his goals. He was almost an hour faster than me. One week after Ironman, he went out and ran a hard 5 mile running race. These are the types of things that prevent people from reaching their potential. Many people under-estimate the damage a race of this distance does to your body. Even though you may feel great one week later, it doesn't mean you are recovered. You need to have the patience and knowledge to understand things like recovery, taper, day off, rest, etc. to reach your potential.

I look forward to reaching my new potential whatever that is and I hope its a little faster too :-)