19 days in....

Its Jan 19th and I am 19 days into official 2012 training. I am feeling good on my long runs, bricks, and 1-2/3 swims per week. My eating has been great since the holidays (ok I ate cake today, but its birthday week!). Longest run has been 8.2 miles in 70 minutes....and that was in sub 10 degree weather. I am ending some of my swim workouts with enough left to kick it up a notch. 2012 Race schedule as follows: Salem Black Cat 20 mile relay c Becky H, Burlington Marathon, Musselman 70.3, ?? Max Performance sprint, Reach the Beach. This year the goal is to get faster! I am working on building base this month and next with some speed work mixed in next month. I have been diligent with my training schedule for the last 25 days. WOOT. Endurance athletes are great at training, racing, eating regimens, sleeping regimens, and toys to make us go faster, be stronger, analyze our data, and keep us cool or warm. The thing most of us are bad at is rest. I've read dozens of articles on this athlete and that athlete preaching the importance of rest days. I always take my rest days and relish them. Rest is just as important as nutrition, speed and endurance workouts, and strength. Some might argue most important. The thing I am bad at is taking an unplanned rest day or skipping a workout. I feel guilty. My professional brain knows that I should listen to my body. The athlete in me wants me to push, do the workout because it will make me stronger or faster. WRONG. All day today I have felt exhausted and mildly congested. My allergies have been out of control lately, but I fear that I am fighting something. Despite getting 8 hours of solid sleep I have felt tired all day. SO I made an executive decision to skip my swim workout. This took 3 people convincing me that it was in fact OK for me to skip the swim. I know that it will in fact be better for me to skip it than push through it and find myself sick tomorrow morning. Tonight's plan: swim and social with my TE girls. Completed: salad with jerk chicken, kombucha, vitamin, ginger team, book, dog, blanket. Tomorrow is a planned rest day as my work schedule, and therefore my training schedule has now changed. I hope to wake up feeling awesome!