Slow Build

Once somewhere I heard it said that in order to get faster you first need to get slower. Slow down to get fast. What does it really mean? Does it really matter? I have gotten slow and so I just believe that I will get faster. Sure, there probably is some formula where you calculate your heart rate, power wattage, calories burned and your current weight vs how much you need to gain to be a race weight,  but I didn't stick around long enough to get to that part. I just grabbed onto the get slow part and ran with it (okay, ran was used loosely, maybe slow jogged is more accurate). You may find yourself asking how I have been able to achieve this ridiculously difficult goal of getting slower. Let me explain by sport.

Swimming. I am not going to lie, with a total of 4 swims between May and December I really had to force myself to hold back and not set world records in the pool;). In keeping with the get slow methodology I forfeited using swim fins and miraculously it worked! Without fins during the drill and kick sets, I was getting lapped by my lane mates. The truth is, without the fins to camouflage my lack of propulsion forward in various stages of my stroke I was keenly aware of my technique flaws. It is now February and I can report that this week I made it through a drill set without getting lapped. How is this relevant to getting faster, I don't know, I just have insight on the getting slower part right now.

Biking. Oh the so many joys of biking slow. You get to see so much more of the country side as you go by. That part of your route that goes by the basil fields, you get to enjoy the aroma for twice as long. Although, same can be said for the chicken coops. Even though my bike has been moving forward more slowly, my legs are not aware of this fact. They have been turning much more quickly than they usually do. I am steadfast in my commitment that I will ride in my small chain ring on the front at all times. Big Ring Come Spring, that is my mantra. Luckily, a lot of my bike skill work takes place on a trainer, cause how awesome is it to ride in your garage with music cranking!

Running. I am not even going to try and convince you that I have been working on getting slow on the run. I have been working on running relaxed. Not in the I just woke up from a nap kinda relaxed way but in the this is effortless and I am not holding everything on my body tight kinda way. Although, I might be holding my butt a little tight so it doesn't jiggle too much! I am running slow, just waiting for the day that I suddenly run fast, cause these things happen overnight with little to no effort don't they? Don't they?

So if you happen to fly by me as I am out training, just know that I mean to go slow. It is all part of the master plan. I am just not sure how long the plan is meant to take, I really shouldn't have stopped reading after slow down to get fast. I have until the end of June, hope that fast shows up on the right day.

'To build may have to be the slow and laborious task of years. To destroy can be the thoughtless act of a single day' - Winston Churchill