Training Naked. Well, without GPS.

Due to some unfortunate circumstances, I am currently without my beloved Garmin 310xt, and have been for about a week (I'll have a post explaining what happened with my Garmin and with what is being done once it's all said and done).  I'm definitely one of those guys who thought, before I owned one, that I didn't need a GPS watch.  I thought they were just kind of an expensive gee-whiz toy and weren't really necessary.  I'm only going to say this one...I was wrong (<-----that hurt!).

The Garmin 310xt.  Isn't it beautiful?

There are a lot of people who use GPS watches.  It's almost like a prerequisite for during triathlons.  I've been using mine pretty solid for the last year or so.  In fact, I almost guarantee that I would not have qualified for Boston had I not had my watch to train and race with.

Now that I've been without it for a week, I am starting to see again that it is not something that I need to own.  KIDDING!  I almost feel like I can't ride my bike or run without it!  The first time I got on my bike without my Garmin, I almost fell off because I felt so awkward!  

Seriously though, I definitely miss it.  I do have an old Polar heart rate monitor that I'm using in the mean time, so I can still do my training based off of my heart rate and perceived effort.  It's just much more fun with the Garmin and being able to look at all the maps and splits of my workouts.  I do think it is good for me to do some of my workouts without all the gadgetry, and in fact, there's a certain professional triathlete who claims that he never races with any (Chris McCormack).  Macca says that one of the best things that a triathlete can do is learn to pace themselves without actual numbers to look at.  If an athlete can go run, and know when their pace is at a specific point, then that athlete will be far better able to pace themselves during a race.  I'm personally not sure I buy into this.  I mean, the guy has only won Ironman Hawaii twice...he can't know what he's talking about, right?

After winning his second Ironman World Championship, Chris McCormack was the first Ironman World Champion to be featured on the Wheaties box.

 I guess he's probably right.  So, on account of his advice, I'm going to take these next two weeks to really pay attention to my body and try and learn how to pace myself without my little wrist computer.  It should be fun, but I sure hope to have my Garmin back soon!