I Am Not Ironman

Iron Man

I haven't been able to get to the gym all week long. Things aren't going well at work. I worked all week and Saturday, too.

I read a quote the other day, and I can't remember how it went exactly, but it was from a big successful CEO, I think it was Steve Jobs. He said that he considered the ability to encourage employees to be the most important management skill of all, and would pay top price for those who had it because it is so very important. Judging from my experience I must be the only person who ever heard of this.

Encouragement? What a novel concept.

I am exhausted. Even so, I plan to try to hit the gym tomorrow. I met with a group of triathletes and ironman competitors again this weekend. They always encourage me to compete. And encouragement, as I said above, motivates me.

I feel encouraged

I was reading up on what constitutes a full-on Ironman triathlon. There is no way I am doing this. Perhaps a half Ironman. Perhaps. But never a full Ironman. I just can't see ever wanting to do this, especially at this point in my life.

I am in pain

I also can't see my knee, which has endured 2 surgeries already, surviving a full Ironman. It's just the marathon part. I used to have the ability to run 26 miles and even try to go a reasonably good pace while doing it. But not now. My knee talks to me after 8 or 9 miles and lets me know that I should not go much further than that. I think a half-marathon would be about my limit before I had some serious swelling and possibly damage in that knee. Add to this the fact that I have never felt the desire to actually run a full marathon and you have a good understanding of why I don't plan to.

If I fart, they all suffer!

Still, they tell me that once you've done a half-Ironman you always find yourself planning to do a full one. It's a bit like tattoos that way. Once you get one you find yourself already planning the next. That's what they say, anyway.