I’ve been calling this the limbo season because of the uncertainty in training and racing. Imagine the limbo dance. The purpose is to see who can make it under the limbo pole without touching it as it gets lower and lower to the floor. Each limbo-er has to do it “face up” with . As Wiki describes it: the dancer prepares and approaches the bar, lowering and leaning back their body while balancing on feet akimbo with knees extended backwards.
The music gets louder and the drumbeats get faster as each dancer eases and eeks their way under the pole that’s parallel to the ground. The winner is the last one under the bar.
This year has been a year of limbo for so many endurance athletes. I had three Ironman races that I had to look forward to and train for - knowing (or assuming) they would be cancelled. There is a dance I did to motivate myself to train and also accept the fact that the training would be for naught.
I still have athletes on my team who are training for Ironman Arizona - but assume and almost hope that it will be cancelled/postponed til next year. The unknowing is what makes us go lower and lower in motivation and hope. It makes us bend and contort our brain to accept that what is happening. The deafening noise from the crowd builds pressure. [And this limbo extends to work life, family life, school life.]
I am actually trying to think of Limbo as more a dance and less of a game. So, I’m trying to be flexible. I’m picturing all the possibilities and will accept the outcome. I’m trying to imagine the anticipation for next year as the music and drumbeats that get louder as 2021 approaches. And I’m imagining that all my training is the dance itself - and the opportunity to get out and play is keeping me on the dance floor - which is where I want to be.