If I didn't know any better I'd swear Stu was training me for the Tour De France. The past two months I have logged more hours on a bike than I have in my entire life! Good news is I actually discovered what bicyclists already know, that your butt does get used to riding on those hard seats day in and day out.
Why so much time on a bike? Because injuries suck- that's why! For the past 4 years I've had problems with my right achilles, but with a looming Olympic season and the need to figure out this whole driving thing, I haven't really had much time to take the time off needed- making my achilles worse and worse and worse. This past summer, while training, my left achilles decided it wasn't fair that all the attention was paid to the right, and demanded attention in a very painful way. I started the summer training and trying to push through training with therapy and treatment, but when every morning it was a struggle to get out of bed- literally crawling out of bed because my achilles weren't warmed up enough to allow me to walk, the pain of trying excruciating, my body demanded I make a change- and so, I got on the bike.
So I've been riding, all variations of bike sprints and even some longer distance stuff, watching people like my rival Kaillie Humphries run and sprint freely. If there was ever a time for envy, it wasn't for the gold medals she deservedly won, but for those moments where I sat on a bike trying to limit extra ankle movement as much as possible while she sprinted. Normally as intense as we train we crave for a bike workout- hoping that at least the seated motion will spare us the soreness and pain of intense sprint workouts, but it does neither, and only makes you long to at least feel the soreness from moving as fast as you can through space- not sitting on a stationary bike.
So I ride, and wait, and ride, and wait- among constant treatments of course- to try to get in shape for the season and also heal correctly so I don't go through another 4 years of the same madness. People ask constantly about what lies ahead of me as far as rugby goes, but in less they've invented a new sport, I don't think tackling on a bike is a good idea. As for bobsled season, its fast approaching with push championships in October, but at least I'm a pilot- able to take less steps than those crazy brakemen. Right now it's a battle of waking up every day to see how I feel- when my achilles feel good, I feel as though I could run a solid 100m in record time, but when they feel bad- well, let's just say I'm lucky to do a bike workout.
So for now, it's a race of my achilles and time- time to heal vs go time. With both bobsled and rugby seasons approaching (they're the same season), time is not on my side. As time goes- nothing I can do will slow it down- so I'm at its mercy, and taking every day as it comes. Time will heal all wounds, and my achilles are no different, as long as I allow time to work its magic and not attempt to fast forward. If that means more time on the bike, then so be it. When they finally do let women in the Tour De France, looks like I'll be ready!
Why so much time on a bike? Because injuries suck- that's why! For the past 4 years I've had problems with my right achilles, but with a looming Olympic season and the need to figure out this whole driving thing, I haven't really had much time to take the time off needed- making my achilles worse and worse and worse. This past summer, while training, my left achilles decided it wasn't fair that all the attention was paid to the right, and demanded attention in a very painful way. I started the summer training and trying to push through training with therapy and treatment, but when every morning it was a struggle to get out of bed- literally crawling out of bed because my achilles weren't warmed up enough to allow me to walk, the pain of trying excruciating, my body demanded I make a change- and so, I got on the bike.
So I've been riding, all variations of bike sprints and even some longer distance stuff, watching people like my rival Kaillie Humphries run and sprint freely. If there was ever a time for envy, it wasn't for the gold medals she deservedly won, but for those moments where I sat on a bike trying to limit extra ankle movement as much as possible while she sprinted. Normally as intense as we train we crave for a bike workout- hoping that at least the seated motion will spare us the soreness and pain of intense sprint workouts, but it does neither, and only makes you long to at least feel the soreness from moving as fast as you can through space- not sitting on a stationary bike.
So I ride, and wait, and ride, and wait- among constant treatments of course- to try to get in shape for the season and also heal correctly so I don't go through another 4 years of the same madness. People ask constantly about what lies ahead of me as far as rugby goes, but in less they've invented a new sport, I don't think tackling on a bike is a good idea. As for bobsled season, its fast approaching with push championships in October, but at least I'm a pilot- able to take less steps than those crazy brakemen. Right now it's a battle of waking up every day to see how I feel- when my achilles feel good, I feel as though I could run a solid 100m in record time, but when they feel bad- well, let's just say I'm lucky to do a bike workout.
So for now, it's a race of my achilles and time- time to heal vs go time. With both bobsled and rugby seasons approaching (they're the same season), time is not on my side. As time goes- nothing I can do will slow it down- so I'm at its mercy, and taking every day as it comes. Time will heal all wounds, and my achilles are no different, as long as I allow time to work its magic and not attempt to fast forward. If that means more time on the bike, then so be it. When they finally do let women in the Tour De France, looks like I'll be ready!
