Where’s Your Shangri-La?

Today I found my Shangri-La.  We all have one.  If we’re lucky, we have more than one.  And if we’re even luckier, we know how to recognize when we’ve arrived, and to enjoy every beautiful minute of it.

When I ride from my house I need to put on my tough-girl face for the first 30 min. (Mom: please skip this part.)  During that time, I’m flying up and down rolling hills, not just negotiating the traffic, but aggressively taking part in it.  I am not passive. I’m not even passive-aggressive.  I’m full on, in-your-face, hand-in-the-air, “don’t-you-dare-pull-out-in-front-of-me aggressive.”  I stake my claim on the road and I don’t waver.  I have no idea what a NYC bike courier’s job would be like, but I bet he’s not a wussy on the road, and I try to be like him. 

During the first 30 minutes, I am watching my SRM but I don’t have to work to get the heart rate up. I don’t have to work to get my power up.  IT’S UP.   I’m fighting for my space and I’m not showing fear.  My legs are strong and I trust they will power me up the hills and back down again, and I’m not letting up till I get there.

There is what happens after gritting my teeth and clawing my way to that amazing place.  Shangri-La.  I have been there a million times, and I almost always enjoy it, but today I really enjoyed it.  I appreciated it.  My Shangri-La has perfectly smooth roads and a canopy of green above me.  The bike lanes are so wide you could easily ride 3 abreast.  The Chattahoochee River flows briskly over the rocks that the fly-fishermen are standing on, and it provides the most delicious breeze when headed east on Riverside Rd… almost as if to say “Great job on this one– here’s your treat.” 

I am fortunate to be coached by an expert-level triathlon coach.  If Matt has taught me anything, he’s taught me to bike. It’s now my weapon (and considering I still haven’t run in a month and my swim sucks–to put it nicely–I don’t have many weapons left in my arsenal).  But Matt has taught me to step it up.  He has taught me to make it hurt on the bike and to hold it in that place. He has taught me the value of training with power and heart rate and I do not feel burdened by it.  Many athletes do, but I do not.  I accept the process and thrive on it, because it works.  Sure, today my heart rate was too high, but that’s because I didn’t stick to my plan to get drunk by noon everyday (on water).  It’s so easy to fall off the wagon. 

But back to Shangri-La.  According to Wikipedia: Shangri-La has become synonymous with any earthly paradise but particularly a mythical Himalayan utopia—a permanently happy land, isolated from the outside world. 

When I get to Shangri-La, I don’t zone out. It just makes me want to work harder. It is so beautiful, so enjoyable, and all I can think of is HOW FREAKING LUCKY WE ARE TO GET TO DO THIS.   Even better… to do it in Shangri-La.   It doesn’t have to be the same place all the time.  I’ve had rides out in the sticks in Cartersville, home of the Budweiser plant, with more insects per capita than anywhere else in the 50 states and territories, with confederate flag-waving, rifle-toting, tooth-missing good ol’ boys who never contain their pets and find it humorous when Sparky the Pit Bull runs down the freaks in spandex.

Even in Cartersville, in the midst of swatting insects and running over snakes in the road, all while trying to dodge Sparky and his owner, Brutus, I’ve found Shangri-La.

And that’s when I look at my SRM and my power is just where it needs to be or higher.  Getting to where I need to be is not work– because I am loving every minute of this and my body wants to EARN the right to ride, to keep its membership at Shangri-La.  I guess that’s part of releasing myself from the burden of it all. Sure, I feel a little pressure to “hit it” when I am given a task/workout.  But the more I soak up my surroundings and enjoy the magical place as well as the process, it becomes less of a burden and more of a challenge that I am ready to tackle. 

Where’s your Shangri-La?  It could be at the gym, on the stairmaster or treadmill, or holding your children or your significant other. It could be cooking a meal for your family or riding a motorcycle through the North Georgia mountains.  The point is, next time you’re there, be sure to acknowledge that you’ve arrived.

Gratitude brings big things.

Be thankful for the opportunity and your body will perform. You will give 100%.   You know that when you depart from Shangri-La, you soaked up every second of the experience. 

And then you can’t wait till your next trip back.