The Little Engine That Could

I think we all can appreciate the value of moralistic children's stories. I personally love children's literature. However, I'm feeling a little bit cynical today after my morning bike ride and I've been thinking all day, what kind of drugs is the Little Engine on that he's so positive? I mean really? Who goes through life chanting "I think I can, I think I can?" Didn't the Little Engine ever feel dejected or frustrated? Or fat? I assure you that if the Little Engine were to race against a bullet train he would not say "I think I can." He'd say "Let's pull into the station. It's 5'oclock somewhere."

Truth be told, my ride was not that bad this morning. There were some real positives actually. I'm more comfortable on Blue Steel- I'm really learning to use my gears to my advantage and I was able to complete our 10 mile ride without a stop.

But I'm slow. No longer is the excuse "I'm not comfortable with my bike" accurate. I'm just slow. Which leads us to another beloved parable, "The Tortoise and the Hare." My issue is I'm a hare in a tortoises body. I want to move fast and keep up with my other rabbit friends (aka, the people I ride with) but alas, I'm back here with the other tortoises (geriatrics and recent weigh-loss surgery patients). I suppose the fact that a triathlon is an endurance event should make me proud to be more tortoise-like, but I do feel a little frustrated today.

I had though I should try and get back to spin, but a friend and teammate suggested I just stick with my bike. Get out on it on my own, and continue to ease into it. She brings up a good point in that spin is all about increasing resistance whereas riding on the road is all about maintaining a good cadence with minimal impact, ie, use your gears! So I'm going to stick with it, and embrace my inner-tortoise. As far as the Little Engine goes, I don't trust anyone that optimistic, however, my face turns so red when I work out, I do look steam-powered. It's fair to say, I'm a character.

Claire