I’ve been reading a blog by a woman who is a triathlete/mother/writer and she made me want to be just like her (what’s new, right?) But she also made me want to blog more about my running/tri-ing, so here we go. Check her out. The first link is her first blog that she no longer writes on but I linked to it because it’s so worth reading about the beginning of her journey. This link is her current blog which is also very much worth reading.
So one week, three days after my first sprint triathlon, I am still alive. YAY!! Not for lack of trying to die though. I skipped out on training for the week and a half before the race (and when I say skipped out on, I mean sat on my lazy butt and justified it with the fact that in 10, 9, 8, 7,… days I’d be burning 700 calories before 9 am so I could be lazy all I wanted).
Skipped training and all, I finished. And I wasn’t last!! I was Eighth from last, but I was not last. But really, first, third, 157th, it’s just semantics, really. Right?!
So let us recap. Partially so that I can make myself sound better than my time will tell you I am, and partially so that I can look back at this and laugh when I’m an IronWoman one day (hopefully later than sooner).
Swim I was thinking my time for the swim (not including a run to the transition area) would be around 9 minutes. I ended up beating that by a long shot even with a run around and into the transition area. It was my strongest part, I’d say. It was also the most fun part for me. I forgot that I was tired and nervous as soon as I got into the water. It was also fun because I passed some people and at the ends of the lanes when we’d stop to take a break (that’s really embarrassing) I talked to the friends I had made while standing in line waiting to jump in.
Bike My bike time was about what I hoped it would be. It was a little faster than when we had practiced it a couple of weeks beforehand. It also seemed a little easier. I rode in mostly the correct gear thanks to Jane and Jess and their “encouragement” and advice. I really enjoyed the bike portion after I got off the first mile or so of constant hills. The whole course was moderately hilly, but that first mile or so was killer since I didn’t stop to catch my breath after the swim. Either way, I remember thinking as I crossed under a bridge at about mile 3 or 4 that this was so much fun! The course was there-and-back style, so it was also fun to cross paths with the fast people and hear them yell nice things at those of us who were “pacing ourselves”.
Me at 45 seconds…or 25 minutes. Or anywhere in between.
Run Worst 2.5 miles of my life. I wish I was kidding. I had done bricks in workouts several times. My legs had started feeling like they could do the race in an upright position. But, I was also counting on/hoping for a lot of adrenaline. About 17 seconds into the run is when I realized that the last two weeks of “letting my body rest up for the big day” was the worst idea ever. About 45 seconds into the run is when I decided that I’d never ever ever ever ever do a triathlon again. About 25 minutes into it is when I realized that my 45 second revelation was still true. At about 35 minutes (because yes, even with a short 2.5 mile run it took me over 35 minutes) I decided that heat was seeping through the earth from the depths of Hell. At 38:something I finished the stupid run.
At 40 minutes I decided that triathlon was my new favorite sport.
I finished. I wasn’t last. I won’t let myself say that I was a winner because I finished, though. I royally screwed up by not training seriously the last two weeks which in my own mind puts me in the “I should have gotten what I deserved but God was gracious” category. I didn’t meet any of the goals I had set which were really quite doable. There was no reason for that.
I think I subconsciously stop working out before big events (I did the same thing with the Cooper River Bridge Run) because I need an excuse if I fail. But More on that later.
Anyway, that’s the story. I’ll do another one on August 12th if all goes as planned. There is also a Half Marathon next month that’s in the plan.
Until next time…
Me finishing. See that person behind me? Yeah, she wasn’t part of the cleanup crew.
10 words or less 