The 'itis

After hearing about Brotha Knapp's health woes, complaining about a case of bronchitis hardly seems justifiable. Know what? I'm going to do it anyway.

Man, being sick sucks. During undergrad, I rarely got sick. When I did get sick, it would just be a mild cold that ran its course in a few days. Thinking back to the good ol' days, I can attribute my stellar immune system to the following: (1) healthy diet, (2) plenty of sleep, (3) regular exercise, and (4) zero stress. Now that I'm in grad school, I still maintain a healthy diet and regular exercise (albeit less volume and frequency), and in terms of sleep, I would say that I fall just shy of optimal levels. Thus, my powers of deduction tell me that stress must be the culprit. Before grad school, I experienced the occasional bout of anxiety before a race but nothing that I would consider stress, per se. Nowadays I'm confronted with real-world expenses such as bills, student loans, car payments, ...and the list goes on and on. Furthermore, actually having to study takes up a good chunk of time which means that I often have to worry whether or not I'll get a project or paper done in time. It's been a long time since cycling took a backseat to anything in my life, and this year it has fallen into the "if I have time to" category. Honestly, in comparison to people with families and a house, my worries and time constraints appear insignificant. But in comparison to what I had grown accustomed to, stress seems like an unwanted intruder. I guess what I'm trying to say is that it's all relative. Basically, stress seems to be the force that pushes an otherwise healthy immune system over the edge.

With that said, I'm waiting anxiously for my semester to draw to a close. For the past few months, I've been chomping at the bit to jump full-swing into the racing season, but my classwork and thesis keeps taking priority. Just a few more weeks...

All things considered, my fitness isn't too bad right now. This case of the 'itis has definitely been a small roadblock, but the extra rest now will probably payoff big time when August rolls around. Plus, I seem to be developing a case of old-man-strength in which I achieve higher levels of fitness with less volume...I guess I'm beginning to feel the benefits of all those long college rides.