Thursday, January 6, 2011

So, yah, I'm doing a triathlon...

So here's where I'm going to talk a bit about this triathlon thing I'm doing. If you're feeling all "WHATEVER lady, I came here for the crafts" then you should hop over to One Pretty Thing about nowish, I guarantee Rachel has something awesome to look at.

Otherwise, I'm going t'be talking about me me me here for a minute...
So yah. A triathlon. It's just a tiny one, teeny distances, super rookie-friendly. It's called a Try-A-Tri. They prolly have cupcakes and hugs for everybody. But you guys. I have/had the gut wrenching terror about it.
See, way back in '09 the very second post I ever wrote was this one. It's about the first aquafit class I ever took. Now, Aquafit (then later Deep Water Running) was the only exercise I ever stuck with for more than 3 months. On account of how it's FUN. Swishy, mermaidy, fun. It genuinely changed my life.
Then in June of last year I realised that swishy-mermaid-fun wasn't cutting it anymore. So I took a spin class, and I did Julia Jones 5K training plan. I wrote about that here.
Those first sessions were barf-inducingly hard, but I kept at it and they got easier. And eventually they even got to be FUN. Running with my fuzzy dog girl on warm summer evenings - genuinely nice. WHO KNEW?!

I had planned on doing a 5k race in September. But by early July I hit a big-deal-for-me milestone, 3k (there was a sunset, it was pretty, I didn't puke; you can read about that here). And by August a 5K run was just what I did on a Friday. I guess I still could have done a race, but racing was never really the point for me.
So, cut to October, I'd settled into my running/spin/pilates routine, I guess I must have seen something on the internetses and the idea of a triathlon passed through my mind super briefly, like REALLY super briefly. But here's what happened, as written to my good chum Ian
me: So I was idly wondering about triathlon, and talking to Elliot about it 'cause M (his ex) used to do triathlon.And he and Andy both rolled their eyes in a YUH HUH way(*they DID. Polite incredulity totally yanks my chain).
Ian: you could do a triathalon. The secret to these things is that once you reach a basic level of fitness, it's all psychological
me: I didn't really want to before but now I'm like, "WHAT? Yes I could. Sure, I'd be the world fattest, slowest, triathlete; but I could finish a sprint race"
I might have to learn something a bit more effctive than old lady swim, but essentially the distances are just a spin class and a friday run. So I'm pondering.
Ian: Your basic front crawl isn't that hard. You can totally do a triathalon. And it'd be worth it just for the "I told you lazy fatasses* I could do a triathalon" effect.
me: I KNOW right?
So, I did a little more research and hit upon the Guelph Lake Try-a-Tri. And I'm in (or I will be once registration opens for reals).
And I managed to coerce another chum into this same gig. She's training for a half marathon anyway (crazy!).
So that's that. I think maybe I'm going to do a few more posts on this, but I won't be offended if you skip them. And here's a picture of my Non-Human training partner, so this post doesn't look all nekkid.
What's funny is that this girl could kick a triathlons' ass. She run's 16-19K with Ian. She swims like a fuzzy fish. And she's super happy doing it. The bike is the only problem, though I betchu she could manage on a Big Wheel. Hmmmmm.....

* for the record, neither of those boys are actually fatasses. They are skinnny men who can eat whatever they like. Which is WORSE!


7 comments:

  1. Aww, thank for the sweet mention. Second, WOW! I'm super impressed! This last summer I went to see a friend run a marathon and, until then, I'd never given any thought to how difficult and how much dedication it takes to do any of those physical challenges. I was blown away by those people. I can't imagine how it must feel to finish a race or triathlon. WOW. Good luck, I'll be cheering you on from the blogosphere!

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  2. Oh, I love this post. First off: Around here, they usually have breakfast burritos for the athletes afterward (you know, to go with your cupcake).

    Seriously though--not that I wasn't also serious about the burritos--you *can* do a triathlon. I've watched a bundle of these things, and I have no doubt whatsoever about it. Plus, I can tell you that they are *fun* to attend and the whole atmosphere of them is just super supportive and lovely. The athletes clearly have a really good time, and I've never seen anything as energetic as a person who's just finished one of those things. (It's actually hilarious--they invariably finish and feel so wildly great that they make all kinds of plans for the rest of the day...and then then conk out in the car on the way home. :-))

    Anyway--what I really wanted to say is this: The greatest thing about triathlons, in my opinion, is seeing that triathletes come in every single size and shape and age. (Though the people in the higher age groups invariably look about 20 years younger than they are--I'm talking 65-year-olds who easily look 40-something. As a friend's mother said last summer, "Behold, the power of the triathlon!") Anyway, every one of them could kick my butt. It's awesome. Soon you'll be among them! Go Erin!

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  3. Oh my! You are an inspiration! My hubs does them (just to shame me, I'm convinced) and he loves loves loves them! The sense of accomplishment alone is worth it, I hear. Can't wait to hear about the training etc!

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  4. Good luck! I want to run a 5k this year--a piddly thing compared to a triathalon--so I can't wait to hear about training and everything.

    And . . . your pup is so ceeeeute. It hurts to look.

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  5. my favorite t ing as a kid was to play "kitchen" with my cousin. I was never the cook, i always had to be the customer. They were older likewise, they bossed me around

    Just Better Together is having a $25 gift certificate giveaway!

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