Notes on a training cycle

Searching for perspective in an imperfect environment

Not all training cycles proceed according to plan. In fact, most don’t. They ebb and flow, and sometimes go careening off into a ditch. Only rarely do they line up perfectly from beginning to end. 

Given all that uncertainty, measuring success – or failure – during training is often a matter of perspective. When you make the most of a difficult situation, you may find yourself more prepared than if you maximized every opportunity. Conversely, what looks good on paper may not always feel right in the body and mind. 

That’s the position I find myself in, less than three weeks until my first race of the season when I toe the line for a local 50K. Amid a series of incredible highs and excruciating lows, a question keeps popping into my head: Am I where I want to be?