Well, I’m back into the full swing of training. Three days in and so far so good. Admittedly I’m not doing the mega-hours on the trainer or rollers that most of you are at this time of the year. No two or three hour rides for me yet. I’m taking things slow and steady.

At first when I saw my training schedule for the next few weeks I thought it seemed a bit light and I was confident it would be “too” easy. Uhm, yah, there is a reason I have a coach… In my case, my coach really does know best. So slow and steady it is.

On Friday I got out for a really fun trail run. It was only 20 minutes long but it was long enough. It was so refreshing to be out in the crisp winter air surrounded by white snow and simply enjoying nature. I ran in my familiar cyclo-cross training grounds so it was also nice to see this terrain under a cloak of snow.

Today was when the man with the hammer showed up… I did a steady 45 minutes on the trainer and then got myself to a hot power yoga class at MountainGoat Yoga in Barrhaven. So in the past, this Saturday morning class would be a breeze for me. The warm-up wasn’t a challenge and the abs exercises – well I barely broke a sweat. 15 minutes into the warm-up I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to finish the class. My arms felt like wet noodles and as for the abs, well I dripped sweat.

It was hard. Really hard. But I told myself that three weeks ago I couldn’t even do one push-up so to get through this class would be a massive accomplishment. The good thing about yoga is that no one is paying any attention to you. It was just me, my mat and the sound of my teacher’s voice. So I got through it. Boy did it feel good at the end.

I know like everything, my strength and endurance will come back with time and patience. This class was good – it reminded me of where I once was and how desperately I want to get back to that place.

On Sunday I’m off for a two hour winter hike. Not sure where yet, but I know it will be another excellent training session with I’m sure many more lessons.

(Stay tuned to this site because in the next week, a big project that I’ve been working on for a while will be revealed. I’m pretty stoked to share this with you. Also, a little bit nervous….)