It's About the Journey, Not the Destination

It's been a month since I took my first plunge into the pool. Over the last several weeks I've been focusing heavily on my swimming technique. Barb and I spoke last night and started comparing notes.

"Are you keeping your head down?...How's the bi-lateral breathing going?...You know there's a thing called a tri suit..."

I was talking to someone this week whose wife has done several triathlons, and he said she became slightly psychotic about it for a period of time. Uh yes, my reading material now includes triathlete magazine and Triathlons for Dummies (to explain the new terms I'm encountering in the magazine!) and my most visited website is http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/ . When people see me reading these selections on the train, it inevitably leads to a conversation with a fellow triathlete - even in the quiet car on Amtrak.

My husband was shocked on Thursday when I said I was stopping by the pool recently for a 8:30pm swim, after also having awoken early that day for morning strength training. And, last night at dinner my friends were amused I wasn't drinking more than one glass of wine as I obsessed about the healthiest things on the menu.

Even I am a bit surprised how much I'm enjoying my more frequent gym workouts. I had to force myself to take a rest day on Friday after having worked out every day. In the past, I've had to rely on a class or my regular instructor at my company gym to keep me motivated. Now, I have this new found motivation. This week I met Daniel Pink, the author of several books including Drive, as part of client workshop we conducted with him. In his book, he explains that we are so much more motivated by intrinsic rather than extrinic motivation. In other words, I'm not just working out to look good.

The advice published to beginner triathletes is to just focus on finishing the triathlon rather than being a top finisher. This weekend, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie "Peaceful Warrior" based on the book by Dan Millman, a former college gymnast who in his youth in the 60's was on a path to the Olympic dream when he had a terrible accident. He learns wisdom through the character Socrates - it's about the journey not the destination.

And so, as much as I'm starting to get a little obsessed about my latest endeavor, I'm just going to enjoy the journey.