New Normal

    My new work schedule is kicking my ass. I am starting at 7:00 am, which has effectively halted my pre-work workouts. In theory, I should be getting off work at 3:30, which would give me a nice, long evening for extended Break Through workouts, but so far I haven't been getting off work a whole lot earlier than I used to. Yes, it means some nice overtime on the paycheck, which I can definitely use, but the fatigue factor is cutting into my ability to train at the level I need to. The one discipline that has benefited is my swimming. I can get to the pool 30 to 45 minutes earlier, which means more mileage. My regular swim has increased from 1-1/2 miles to 2 miles twice a week, and one longer swim of 2-1/2 to 3 miles. I have been managing to increase my speed a notch or two as well, so no complaints in this arena.
    I keep telling myself that I just need a few weeks to adjust to the new schedule and added responsibilities, then I can settle into my "new normal." This is all good and well as long as I can manage to start increasing my training time, especially on the bike. I need to make 2 to 3 hours 3 or 4 times a week be the new gold standard, bumping that up incrementally until I can do a solid 125 miles as a Saturday ride (oh-dear-gods-what-am-I-thinking?). If I can't manage that by, say, mid July, I will likely not be able to complete the Epic 250K. So, how to find the training time? I really can't eke out much more than 2 hours a day during the work week, so that leaves weekends as the main asskicker.
    As you may have surmised by my babbling, my brain is scrambling around ineffectively, trying to figure out how to increase my training volume when I already feel like I am burning the candle at both ends. I do know this; it is time for me to move from the winter base building workouts to the preseason, event specific training, including increased volume and mileage. Somehow, I also need to manage to wedge in a bit more strength training, which has fallen by the wayside the last few weeks. If I can just get my work schedule to settle down and let me get off work at 3:30 like I should, that would give me a solid 5 to 6 hours of daylight every evening between now and September. Gah! My brain just can't wrap itself around how I can squeeze more hours of training into my life, but I will have to, the countdown is on, days are ticking past with alarming speed. I won't allow myself to disappoint me. I can do this, I just need to find my New Normal.