Sprint Triathlon Training: Day 1

Day 1:

8am. What was I thinking? Is it too late to back out of this? I feel a tickle in my throat. I'm sure I'm getting sick. I should just skip working out today. I'll start training tomorrow...or Saturday. I also got an hour of sleep last night, so I bet if I work out I'll be too tired to do anything else today.

2 pm: Both kids are asleep. I should go running. I feel like I have water in my lungs. I'm pretty sure it would make me cough like crazy the rest of the day. Oh yeah, I'm really tired. I think instead of running I'll go lie down, but I should work out today. I promise I'll do it before bed tonight.

4:30 pm: If I don't do it now, I won't do it. Swimsuit, check. Work out clothes, check. Running shoes, check. Wow, I'm actually excited for this. I haven't been swimming for a long time. Last time was a year ago. After four laps I was boom roasted. Shakey the rest of the day. Ok, Rachel. You know what? Even if you can only swim two laps today, that's a start. You've got until May to build up to 12.

5pm: I pull up to the rec center. What was I thinking signing up for a triathlon? The running, I can build up to, the biking not a big deal. But the swimming. I'm pretty sure it's going to kill me. Oh the horror. Well, now that I've gotten other people involved, and paid the $, it's too late to back out now, and if I don't start training, I won't be able to do it.

Laura meets me, and we exchange looks. We know exactly what the other is thinking. What were we thinking? Oh well. What's done is done, and now we have a few months to get ready. And this will give us the push we need to gets our behinds moving, and start dropping weight like it's too hot to carry.

We go into the cardio room. Bikes on. Set for 20 minutes. Hmmm. This isn't too bad. 4 minutes and I've done almost 3 miles.

20 minutes. 8 miles. Not bad. Now for the hard part. The swimming. I strip off my workout clothes, and come out in a swim suit. Lucky for me the walk from the showers to the pool wasn't too far. Not a lot of people here. Good. Now I won't have to suffer humiliation in front of everybody. (because of course, everybody watching me). I jump in one lane, Laura jumps in the lane next to me. Each lap is 25 meters. So we need to do 12. Alright let's get started.

1- small break. Not too bad.
2-small break. I could keep going.
3-4-5 Take a breather. My stroke at the end is getting a little sloppy.
6-backstroke. Just for fun.
7-Holy cow! My legs are burning, but I'm not nearly as tired as I thought.
8-Slowing down a touch, but I could keep going.

I get to the end of the pool and realize I did much better than I thought. I CAN DO THIS!!! If I already can swim 8 of 12 laps, and not be tired, PLUS an 8 mile bike ride. By May I should be completely ready to go for the sprint Triathlon!

Try to pull myself out of the side of the pool without the ladder. Failed on the first attempt. Shakier than I thought. Ended up on my tummy, kind of like a beach whale trying to get out of the water. (I'm not calling myself a beached whale, that's just the image that came to mind as I was attempting to get out of the pool). Failed attempt at a graceful/athletic/cool exit from the pool. Good thing there isn't anybody who's paying attention.

What was I scared of? I wish I could come here and do this every day! I can't wait until next Monday! This is so fun! Now I have to get a hair cap, ear plugs, and a good pair of goggles. I'm so excited for this!

Run: 2.5 miles in 30 minutes
Swim: 8 laps (200 meters) in ? wasn't timing.
Biking: 8 miles in 20 minutes.
Weight: 195
Days until triathlon: 124 days=4 months 3 days
Will I be sore tomorrow? Without a doubt. But good sore.