Chronic Fatigue: Believe It Or Not! (cont.)
I was feeling tired during the week so I took it easy
training. I finished fourth at Alcatraz, my fifth race in
five weekends. I was never really in the hunt for the title,
performing a stupid human bike crash along the way. I was
feeling tired after the race. I gave it my best and not
every race goes well. I felt tired, but I had two weeks
before the US National Championships in St. Joeseph, Minnesota,
Aug. 20. I trained hard the first week after Alcatraz and
feeling tired, I took the week easy before Schu’s in
order to taper for the Champs.
At Schu’s, I got compliments before the race from
other athletes about how well I was racing. Many picked
me to win and as much as I tried to psyche myself up for
the race, my body seemed tired. There were fifty pros entered,
including several top international athletes. After an average
swim, I hopped on the bike and told myself this is where
I make my move. I hammered the first 10K, but I was surprised
to notice that I wasn’t dropping any of the competition.
In fact, people were catching me. I realized my body was
not functioning at its optimal performance. However, I was
running well in previous races so I was looking forward
to that part of the race. I got off the bike with about
15 other athletes and began running..........backwards.
I felt so tired and people were cheering for me, but I could
hardly move. To add to my frustration, this was the only
race my parents were able to attend in ‘95 and I wanted
to perform well in front of them. I finished 10th, my worse
finish in a US race since my first year as a pro in 1989.
Next week was the Mrs. T’s Chicago race, Aug. 27
and I felt that if I rested all week, I would be ready.
I stayed in the Michigan area during the week and trained
with fellow triathlete Pat Brown. I only trained 4:30 hours
during the week and I kept reiterating to Pat how tired
I felt. On race day, just like at Schu’s, I mentally
psyched myself up, but to no avail. After a good swim, being
in the lead pack, I got on the bike and this time I couldn’t
even stay with anyone on the bike. I tried pedaling aggressively,
but I wasn’t even breathing hard. My heart rate was
around 135 (my anaerobic threshold is 173). At 12 miles
into the bike, I dropped out. The first race in my life
where I dropped out (I dropped out of Ixtapa in ‘94
because ITU’s World Cup series ranking system structure
gave me incentive to drop out instead of finish). I just
couldn’t finish. It was frustrating to watch the other
pros finish.
I was scheduled to leave the following day from Chicago
to England to compete the next weekend at the Bupa Triathlon
in Bath, England, Sept. 3 and then stay in Europe to prepare
for the Nice Triathlon. While in Chicago, I canceled my
flight to Europe and called the Bupa race director to tell
him I would not be attending. This was one of the low points
of my career. I flew back to Boulder Monday.
For the next four weeks, I trained between 4-6 hours a
week of low intensity. I got my blood checked which showed
normal with the exception of high iron content, saw two
Chinese medicine specialists, one Internist, massage once
a week and acupuncture three times. I tried herbal teas,
vitamin supplements and pure magnesium for better absorption
into the cells. My state of fatigue hadn’t changed
for six weeks. It was taking me at least an hour to fall
asleep every night even though I was exhausted. I have insomnia
on a regular basis when I am healthy, but I never woke up
around two or three A.M. and stayed awake for two hours
as I did when I had CF. My muscles ached and I was no fun
to be around. For six weeks, I had no improvements with
my symptoms.
Since I was participating in the Triathlon Pro Tour series.
I had to compete in the Padre Island race, Sept. 23 to maintain
my points ranking. I was worried about how the race would
affect my fatigue after two hours of racing at or above
my AT. I finished fourth and was happy with my performance.
I wasn’t in contention to beat first place finisher
Pigg. In fact, my right leg locked up with three miles left
in the run because I hadn’t been training. I was sore
for the next three days, but my fatigue didn’t get
any worse. Then, on Sept. 30, my fatigue cleared up in two
days. It was amazing how much better I felt. I was able
to sleep fitfully and I was no longer feeling tired. This
was the seventh week of CF. I still can’t put a finger
on why it cleared up, especially just five days after a
hard effort at the race.
I wanted to do the TPT Thailand race Oct. 20. For the
next three weeks, I did a maximum of two sports a day with
every third day off. I never trained more than three hours
a day and all was at low intensity. I finished third at
Thailand, again getting whipped by Pigg, but I was happy
because the course was hot and difficult and my performance
was due to a lack of fitness, not fatigue..
I’m sure you have been able to summarize that too
much racing and too much training at a high intensity may
result into a total collapse not only of the muscular system,
but the immune system as well. Athletes get caught up into
racing well and push the envelope beyond what the body can
accept. I consider myself to be intelligent with my training
regimen, but I still faltered with success and improvement.
Chronic fatigue is more likely to affect those triathletes
who also must work 40 plus hours a week. Full time athletes
have more free time to let their body rest and recover.
Athletes with other occupations must try to fit in their
training around a already hectic schedule of work and family
with minimal sleep. If you notice any of the Chronic Fatigue
symptoms, stop, take a deep breath and reevaluate your schedule.
Rest, Rest and more rest. In the long run, you’ll show
more improvement and be physically able to walk your dog.
* Bibliography -
“Overtraining in Endurance Athletes: A Brief Review,”
Manfred Lehmann, Carl Foster & Joeseph Keul, Sinai Samaritan
Medical Center, Milwaukee, WI. January, 1993
“Hope and Help For Chronic Fatigue Syndrome,”
Karyn Feiden, Simon & Schuster, 1990
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