Over the summer I bought a barbell and about 300lbs of weights in an effort to get stronger and gain more muscle. It has worked to some degree but I wish I had someone to check my form because I believe my poor form contributed to my hernia which developed in September. I was deadlifting about 180lb, it was a strain but not enormous. I just sort of jumped in to this mode of training without any proper coaching. 4 months later, I am recovering from inguinal hernia surgery. It's going to be several weeks before I can get back to the strenuous activity that I love.
January is probably the best time to be sidelined as the bike trails are usually closed. This winter though, I didn't want to take any time off from the bike since last year it was so hard to get back in bike shape after 2 months off. That hurt, a lot. But it was a good pain. I have Tough Mudder coming up mid-February but I doubt I'll be ready for it. I was hoping to continue running through January and weight/strength training and peak around the event but now it looks like I'll just be getting started back right before the event. If I were to do the event, it could be extremely painful, embarrassing or both.
Not to mention the Snake Creek Gap Time Trials that I wanted to do this year. I've heard these races are uber tough so of course I wanted to tackle them. To me, they're what real MTB racing is all about. I won't consider myself a real racer until I've completed one of them. The next one is first Saturday in February. By then I'll be out of bike shape and that race would probably prove extremely painful, embarrassing, etc. Not that I mind the pain. I have come to love the fact that there is happiness to be found in suffering.
For now, I'll continue to take it easy and rest and not do any of the exhausting things that I do. I can't get my "medicine" for now but it will taste all the more sweeter when I can again.
January is probably the best time to be sidelined as the bike trails are usually closed. This winter though, I didn't want to take any time off from the bike since last year it was so hard to get back in bike shape after 2 months off. That hurt, a lot. But it was a good pain. I have Tough Mudder coming up mid-February but I doubt I'll be ready for it. I was hoping to continue running through January and weight/strength training and peak around the event but now it looks like I'll just be getting started back right before the event. If I were to do the event, it could be extremely painful, embarrassing or both.
Not to mention the Snake Creek Gap Time Trials that I wanted to do this year. I've heard these races are uber tough so of course I wanted to tackle them. To me, they're what real MTB racing is all about. I won't consider myself a real racer until I've completed one of them. The next one is first Saturday in February. By then I'll be out of bike shape and that race would probably prove extremely painful, embarrassing, etc. Not that I mind the pain. I have come to love the fact that there is happiness to be found in suffering.
For now, I'll continue to take it easy and rest and not do any of the exhausting things that I do. I can't get my "medicine" for now but it will taste all the more sweeter when I can again.