2017 -- Stay hungry

"Disappointing," that's the best word to describe my 2016 season. Last year, I made an active decision to get my training back on track and deliver some strong results. I had aimed to top off the season with a sub-10-hour PR at Ironman Maryland. Well, I ended up

• missing an early-season race for illness
• having to DQ (still ran but cut the bike short) due to a triple-flat situation 
• DNSing Maryland after hurricane-light conditions scrapped the swim, shortened the bike and flooded the run

I spent the winter reconsidering my approach to the sport. Is triathlon too much of an "all your eggs in one basket" sport to still make sense in my life? Am I better doing more frequent bike or running races?

The conclusion that I came to is that

• I love the sport of triathlon. It has had a tremendously positive influence in my life at times when I've needed that most.
• The sport mix keeps me interested and challenged.
• I have unfinished business, especially at the half- and full-Ironman distances.

With that in mind, I'm back at it and ready to make this a personal best year. And I'm going to remain focused on that positive attitude despite the inevitable hiccups that come with heavy racing and training. As I write this, I'm sitting in Galveston, the day before Ironman 70.3 Texas. I am not racing tomorrow, but will be cheering on my good friend Hugh. Why? Because I broke my radius five weeks ago when I tripped and fell--incredibly ungracefully--while running a tempo workout at night.

But rather than throw in the towel--"another year of shit racing ahead of me"--I'm taking the setback in stride and am feeling hungry. I've managed to keep up run and bike volume despite the broken arm. At times, it has been very frustrating. Riding your trainer with a broken arm sucks. A lot. (After this whole experience, I have a tonne of respect for nearly every professional cyclist who will break their collarbone at some point during their career and be back on the trainer hard a few days later. It's not fun. And no matter what you do, the pain eats away at your brain during the early weeks of recovery.)

I've also focused on tightening up diet and lifestyle choices. I'm over 30 now and my job can be stressful... hard training requires dedicated R&R and solid, consistent nutrition. I'm trying to take a page from a close colleague who I've seen increasingly improve as a runner--he's a sub-3:00 marathon now--through the "simple" approach of consistency. His big weeks aren't huge, but he focuses on quality, on recovery and on eating well.

So, at seven weeks out from my first race of the year, I'm excited to cheer Hugh on tomorrow (and to do a nice 2-hour easy run of my own while he's out on the bike.)

Here's to staying hungry.