Do NOT let me register for another event!

Less than a week ago I wrapped up my short and sweet triathlon season.  All week, I was talking about how relieved I was not to have another event on the schedule to train for.  It was time to finally give my house that deep cleaning that it desperately needed, to tackle the jungle that once was my tended yard, to do some home improvement projects and dig into the stack of books that have been collecting dust.  I have a life outside of my training schedule y'know!  My travel plans, surfing, kid activities and summer life are full enough without throwing a regimented exercise routine into the mix.  Yes, it was time to loosen up.  Exercise when I wanted to, however long I wanted to and with whomever I wanted to.  Ah, it was going to be beautiful.

Then last night it all changed.  I looked at my training log and here's what I saw for last week:

Monday: HOV Sprint Tri
Tuesday: 4 mile run
Wednesday: bailed out on swim plans
Thursday: bailed out on run plans
Friday: 750 meter swim & bailed out on weight training
Saturday: 5 mile/1-1/2 hour trail run with 25 minutes worth of breaks

Ack! I'm lazy! Three tiny workouts in?  I've gotta make up for it immediately!  Surely, I'm going to lose all my fitness, pack on the pounds and become accustomed to slovenly ways.  Is it possible to just do what I want, when I want fitness-wise without a culminating event?  Perhaps I'm hooked on the excitement and resulting rush of events?  Whatever it is, much like an addict jonesing for her next fix, I found myself searching around for an event to register and train for.  My next one isn't until August 14th and it's only a 45 mile winery bike ride.  That hardly counts.  After that it's Hood to Coast August 26 through August 27.  For that I only need to be half marathon ready.  No, that wasn't enough.  I needed something bigger, more challenging, more risky!  September 11th's Warrior Dash?  Nope, not quite.  Cal International Marathon on December 4th's?  Now we're talking! Seriously, what turned me into this event clucker?

Why can't I throw myself at other tasks this way?  I wish I could register and train for an event that would end with a clean, clutter free home, an organized garage, freshly painted walls, or a tidy, planted and tended yard.  Perhaps then I'd actually do the steps little by little, as I do with my marathon or triathlon training to achieve the desired result?  I am a procrastinator.  I need structure, deadlines, threatening late notices and reminder calls to get things done.  So here's my latest throw down.  I forbid myself to register for another event until I have a good number of things crossed off the to-do list that I've been burdened by, feeling guilty about and not getting anywhere on for way too many months (years?) than I care to admit. This rule starts just as soon as I find a 5K to run really fast this summer.