Here at Patheos — as with most places with a spirituality focus — you hear a lot about the sprint and the mind, but less about the body. Winter can be a sedentary season, ripe for hibernation and settling in by a fire. But with the warming days of spring upon us, I can feel my body wanting to be more active and to be outside more.
To that end, I ran 4 miles this morning, and I’m counting it as “Day 1” of a two-month Sprint Triathlon training: Swim 750m/.47 mi, Bike 20 km/12.4 mi, Run 5 km/3.1 mi. Click here to see the free training program I’m using. (It’s designed by the same person whose half-marathon training I almost finished last year before the weather became too cold.) I don’t have a particular race in mind yet, but according an online Triathlon Calendar there are a number of upcoming races in the Maryland/D.C. area that I may eventually consider.
While running, I also recommend listening to the free NPR Music Podcast as a highly enjoyable way of diversifying your music taste.
For the strength portions, I plan to do the weight DVDs of P90X, but I have no desire to be in front a television six days a week with glorious weather outside, so the running/biking/swimming aspects of triathlon training are much more appealing to me than the cardio portions of P90X. I’m currently in “week six” of P90X, which is how I’ve tried to stay in shape this winter when the weather was too cold for me to enjoy running and biking outside. My wife and I have also been swimming once a week or so at a local Aquatic Center, which is where I’ll be doing the lap swimming portion of the triathlon training.
If jumping into a 5K sounds like too much, I’ve heard many reports of success with the Couch-to-5K Running Plan.
What are your plans this spring for a more embodied spirituality that incorporates spirit, mind, and body? Any advice out there for triathlon running or for those just beginning to train?
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