529IronMan

Every month I reflect on the activities of the past month to see what I’ve done and to track progress. Today it’s time for: August.

August was focussed solely on my first tri. And I did it. My first triathlon. Totally cool experience and nice to see the hard work pay off. The time goal I stated, sub 3 hours, was also achieved so I couldn’t be happier. It was a wonderful which really left me wanting more. If you want the full recap then check out my race report of my first triathlon.

I worked out 10 days in August (of the available 31) so that’s about 32%. This is somewhat expected as I had two taper weeks leading up to the 2 Tri’s I had planned to do. One of them unfortunately I had to cancel because of an ear infection. A big disappointment but I did give me interesting perspectives on dealing with setbacks while realizing your dreams.

Saturday the 21th of August will go down as the day on which I did my first Tri. A Olympic Distance Triathlon - 1,5km swim, 40km bike ride, 10km run - to be exactly.
The last months I had a decent preparation trying to build speed, strength and endurance. This time I wasn’t bothered by the [...]

What was supposed to be my first triathlon last week didn’t happen because of a nasty ear infection. It sucked big time and really was a big dent is my motivation.

It’s been 10 days but and luckily I have the opportunity to comeback with a vengeance on Saturday when I’ll enter my first Oly. Feeling good, stoked and curious about the event, the experience and my performance.

I reflected on this unexpected setback (me not being able to participate in my first triathlon) and drew some lessons which I want to share with you guys.

Every month I reflect on the activities of the past month to see what I’ve done and to track progress. Today it’s time for: July.

July was a great month. Was able to put in a ton of training; focussing on swimming and running while maintaining my current bike form (and trying to get used to my new bike).

I worked out 17 days in June (of the available 31) so that’s almost 55%. This will and must go up in the upcoming periods during heavy training months. But for now I’m happy.

Together we shed blood, shared tears and drowned in our sweat. One look at each other is enough. We know what we sacrificed and the sacrifices we asked from our loved ones.

The long practice hours; before work, after work, during the weekend. Waking up at 6 AM to do a light swim work out. Skipping after-work drinks, nights out with the boys or family obligation because you’re working on your bricks. Our idea of a nice weekend breakfast is first do a 80km bike workout, followed by a nice a lovely meal.

It’s great to support others. To cheer for them. To applaud for them. To wish them the best of luck. To follow them during their quest. To be proud of them. To want to see them succeed. To celebrate their wins and to share their losses.

But please be inspired by the greatness of others and let it be your motivation to want to perform on that next level. Don’t be the sucker who only observes but doesn’t take action.

Visualize that you’re not the one who’s rooting but you’re the one they’re rooting for.

To watch greatness and history happen is nice. To be the one who’s doing it is brilliant.

Every month I reflect on the activities of the past month to see what I’ve done and to track progress. Today it’s time for: June.

June was an intense month with a lot of training mainly focussed on cycling while maintaining my current skill level of running and swimming. I tried to maintain a ’schedule’ of two shorts and one long ride a week combined with an occasional swim or run training.

I worked out 15 days in June (of the available 30) so that’s 50%. I should increase this metric although I sincerely believe it’s not about the total amount but also more on intensity.

Once upon a time I was a fairly heavy coffee user drinking 8 to 10 cup of joe’s a day. It wasn’t the good stuff either, it was low quality / even worse taste coffee made from real coffee powder. Yeah! Then one day I decided to quit. Cold turkey. I suffered 3 days of headaches before giving in and getting a shot (which relieved me from my headaches). This was the moment I realized that drinking large amounts of coffee each day probably wasn’t the best thing to do. From that day, 1,5 year ago, I’ve started lessen my coffee consumption.

Recently I, once again, drastically cut down on my coffee. Two weeks went by without drinking a cup and… it felt really good. I was way more relaxed and could focus more easily. I had more real, raw energy, energy not coming from a coffee-buzz or high.

Looking for motivation to cut down on coffee? Look no further, hereby the 8 reasons to stop drinking coffee.

I watched the amazing movie Inglourious Basterds by Quentin Tarantino a couple of weeks ago. It’s a great, exciting movie which tells to story of… well.. Jews vs. Nazi’s. (I’m not writing the plot here, I you want to know more about the movie then check out the trailer or IMDB)

The whole movie is based on complex and intense dialogues and possesses some great one-liners.

So hereby I present you an overview of the 7 inspirational quotes and lessons (in business and life) from Inglourious Basterds.

Every month I reflect on the activities of the past month to see what I’ve done and to track progress. Today it’s time for: May.

May was a month dominated by short breaks and big parties a.k.a. bad input for training. Although I’m very much committed on completing the Ironman I’m not planning on living a mormon lifestyle in which I don’t have the opportunity to exploit the wonderful pleasures in life.

Enjoy life and train/party hard. But do it both responsible and create the best of both world. Keep in mind that while you party at night you must be prepared to wake up at 08:00 am to kick some serious ass. That may sound as a bit much but trust me, I’ve been there, it’s all worth it.

Now lets continue with the breakdown.