10 day magic...

My high school track and field coach Erik Belby used to tell us about the 10 day rule to getting in shape.  Coach Belby used to tell us it took about 10 days of working out for the body to adapt and actually feel the gains made through the initial days of training.  I've always remembered this and always felt it to be true.  This year is no different.  On day 1 I was slogging my way through a 3 mile run.  By day 10 I had run 50 minutes and it felt easier than the 20 minutes of day 1.  I have felt better in the pool and stronger on the bike.  I'm a true believer in the rule of 10 days.  I worked out with our high school team on Friday running hill repeats with kids who have a lot more speed than I do...they are also half my age now.  I mentioned to Coach Belby who still leads the Spartan distance group (and has won 4 state championships to go along with 2 runner-up showings) how the 10 day rule has always come to fruition for me.  I also told him that the rule should include a disclaimer that it must be 10 solid days of working out.  Maybe 1 day off should be allowed but the rule of 10 days would not apply to an athlete that works out 1 day and then takes the next 2 off...so on and so forth.  Week 2 had me sick half way through the week and feeling down on energy.  I skipped some late night bike rides and opted for the extra sleep leading me to missing my bike goal.  I only biked 75 miles this week but hit my running goal of 33 miles and my swimming goal of 9,000 yards.  I met all my other goals on my weekly checklist.  The one area I need to get more focused is on my eating.  I have not eaten clean and it shows in my weight.  I started training at 171 and today I weighed 172.  I cannot run or bike my best at this weight.  I know running typically gets a lot easier for me when I start training because I get in better shape and combine that with losing weight leading to big gains.  I'm missing the weight part right now so I need to get that under control.  I do feel much stronger as I was able to complete a 60 minute run yesterday for my longest yet this year.  This week will see modest increases again as I remain patient in my training for 2013.  I'm still sifting through all the possible races and deciding what ones I want to do.  I'm looking at not racing until June 8th but I would like to find something in late May to get the cobwebs blown off and get over the initial sorness that comes with the first races because I'm contemplating racing on June 8 and June 9th and that won't be possible if I haven't done any races prior.  I will be so sore from June 8 that I won't be able to race the following day.  Either way I'm excited about the year and the progress I'm making in training.  Thanks for reading...feel free to take the 10 day challenge and let me know how you feel on day 10 compared to day 1.  DREAM BIG!!