Happiness

This week I took a day off training because I felt tired, and the next morning I was very upset to myself after seeing somebody running on the sidewalk. In a stessful week at work, the question came to my mind: What makes us happy?

With so many people not able to swim, bike or run, for health problems, money or time constraints or psych blockage, should we be happy on being able to finish a race, or be ready at the start?

Always moved by adrenaline and endorphines, we push ourselves week after week, collecting miles and hours in training logs, worn off shoes and race bibs. Many times we loose the focus, because of tiredness, hunger or pain. My reaction to work stress invariably throws me to find new challenges, the crazier the better. Is happiness the absence of injuries, or a busy race schedule?

Permanently planning for the next race, days, months and years go by with stubborn preparation. We chase results, racing our peers. Can we train to be happy? If results matter, is an elite athlete happier than an age-grouper?

Science and Medicine more and more bring evidence that physical activity and wellness are intrinsically related and dependent on each other.

To be an athlete is not a profession, a badge, or a status; it is a state and a way of life. It takes dedication, sweat and pain, but so it is life and all pleasures.

Are we happy because we're athletes, or we are athletes because we're happy?

Hero of the week: Haile Gebrselassie won the Dubai Marathon yesterday in 2:05:29. Because of the rain, he could not break his own current world record of 2:03:59. “I’m really pleased with this performance,” he said at the press conference, “this is my best time in this sort of weather. (...) This is better than Dubai last year (2:04:53) for me, so I’m happy.”

Quote of the week: "If you want to be happy, be." Leo Tolstoy

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Movie Break

After watching "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" a lightning struck me. Unnecessary to say, the movies that become our favorites always bring reflections of our inner truths or beliefs, but I could not avoid another opportunity to learn to live with myself: what are the favorite movies of an endurance athlete?

I could not avoid its resemblance to Coppola's Youth Without Youth, and ancient Greek tragedies, showing men and women fighting against predetermination of their destinies. That is one of the reasons we cannot forget them. You can choose fictional characters (Birdy, 1984) or real people (Bird, 1988), journeys of self-discovery and life-changing stories are always inspiring, pushing us to our limits (if there are limits...).

Talking about life stories, we cannot forget epic movies like Gone with the Wind, Doctor Zhivago, The English Patient, endurance tests on themselves for time seated on hard chairs. I always think of them when I am swimming, running or biking large numbers.

Because of its obvious action appeal, all Indiana Jones, James Bond and Mission: Impossible series are always fun, even after the twentieth replay, but unconscious action is always dangerous, as depicted in A Clockwork Orange and Minority Report.

Looking beautiful in the picture (like The Matrix series), or dirty and dehydrated (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly) we all try to be the heroes finishing our endurance tests, official or private, outdoors or indoors. We seek for our inner truths, challenging predetermination of limits, making our lifes a gift to our loved ones (if you did not watch it, Run for your Life).

It is not just about fun.

Love your bike

I have never written how much I love my bike (2007 Scatante T560). It is one of the closest things to my heart, together with my wetsuit and my sunglasses. It amazes me how far and how fast it can take you (with appropriate training). There is also the green appeal, with the bonus of avoid driving in crazy cities, like LA. And there is the nostalgic feeling from our childhood (but I have to say: this bike hurts A LOT more than all my previous ones...).

That is probably the main reason I bought a trainer. Of course it was a good idea for ramping up the Ironman training, without leaving my wife alone for many hours on weekends (she still does not have a bike). It is also a big bonus to be able to train at 11PM in a weekday. I really needed to increase my time on the bike.

Setting up the trainer in the balcony of my new apartment seems almost an unfair advantage for me to beat the competition. If it really does not help me with biking, for sure it will help me with my running, as it has already done.

Finally I am ready to take ahead more serious training. I probably will need to buy more bike shorts.

Sent from my Iphone.

Next races: Surf City USA Marathon (02/01/09), Pasadena Marathon (03/22/09), 27th Annual Avia Wildflower Triathlon Long Course (05/02/09), Vineman Ironman 70.3 (07/19/09).

Heroes of the week: San Diego Chargers on the playoffs. Support your local team!

Quote of the week: “Talk of nothing but business, and dispatch that business quickly." Aldus Manutius.