Tomorrow, January 10, we will be exactly nine months away from the Ironman in Kona. And I am struck with the thought that if a human fetus can grow enough in nine months to form an actual living and breathing person, then I can grow enough in the next nine months to get myself 140 miles in one day.
Nine months away, and the training now begins for real. I am no longer getting in a run here and bike ride there, but I am actually going to begin a designated training schedule that has one end goal as its conclusion: crossing the finish line on October 10.
I was also reminded this week that it will be far from easy. It's not easy for anyone, heart transplant or not - immuno suppressed or not. But it will be extra hard for me. I picked up a stomach bug at the beginning of the week and at the end of our holiday trip to Michigan and I have been paying a dear price all week. On the bright side, I've dropped about seven pounds. Another 10 to 15 and I'll be at my optimum IM weight. But it's probably not the healthiest way to lose weight. And I can tell you for sure that it's not a fun way to drop the extra pounds.
When I get a cold, or an infection, or a virus of some kind, it sticks with me. In an effort to keep my body's immune system in check and in stand-down mode in regards to the new heart, there is a trade-off. When I get a cold, or an infection, or a stomach bug, I have virtually nothing in my arsenal to fight it. That's what's been happening this week. In the grand scheme of things it won't come close to derailing my IM plans. It just means that as I begin my training in earnest I'll do it a little weaker than I had been a week ago. A minor setback at most.
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