First - Visas successfully applied for (after a dramatic morning at the Chinese consulate that I blogged about but then had deleted - yes, you did miss out, but it was too long to type a second time). Mom is going to pick them up today, so everyone keep your fingers crossed that there isn't any reason for us not to be able to get into China... (None I can think of, but after our experience last weekend, I'm not taking anything for granted).
I spent the majority of last weekend sleeping down in Galveston - I needed a vacation pretty badly. Aside from massive amounts of sleeping, I got in some solid training, and even a little beach time, as well as lots of healthy food. Mom was working hard to help revive me from the ridiculously long days I've been working lately. You should see my apartment. Oy. It looks like a bunch of freshman college boys live there. Who has time to clean? But anyways, three days in Galveston was just what the doctor ordered, and I was chomping at the bit to get back to work by Sunday.
You might wonder how I've been fitting training befitting a world championship contender fits in with this crazy schedule that doesn't even leave time for basic chores. Ok, well first of all, obviously training takes priority over a clean house. If you don't know this, then you don't know me very well. But that being said, it has still been tough to fit in what I want (and what Coach Aaron wants). Having the Playtri Center open has been literally like a dream come true, but it's timing, right before Beijing, has been less than ideal training-wise. To be frank, I would probably be better prepared for this race had we not opened when we did. But at the end of the day, I'd rather be a great coach than a great athlete, so it's worth the sacrifice.
I've been getting 1, maybe 2 hours of training a day, squeezing swims into my lunch hour and bike rides in the Computrainer studio at the Center at 8:00 PM when I get done at work, hitting the White Rock trails at dawn and twilight for interval runs, and racing almost every weekend in an attempt to up my regional ranking and, more importantly, get in some solid brick workouts!!!
It's been an adventure. I never thought I would be that adult who was so obsessed (there's no other word) with their job that they work 12 hour days on a regular basis and squeeze the rest of life in as much as possible. I'm lucky to have an incredibly understanding and supportive boyfriend and an awesome coach who is willing to work around my wild schedule, as well as bosses who at least understand the importance of training and are willing to let me fit in an hour of training here or there. Also, thank god I'm not married with a family. I just couldn't make it work if that was the case - that's something I do want eventually, but I'm glad I can be focused on developing myself as a coach right now without feeling like the important people in my life are getting neglected.
Funny the things life makes you think about.
China draws ever closer! Less than two months now and mom and I will be on a plane to Beijing, heading to my first ever international competition. Something I always dreamed of, but never imagined would actually be a reality. No matter what happens or how I do, I'm one lucky girl.
Happy training everybody
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