Try a Tri

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Two strong contributors to staying focused, consistent and being successful in your fitness endeavors are – set specific goal(s) and train with friends. One fun and challenging goal is triathlon! If you think you can’t, think again.

In the past several years there has been a surge in popularity in the Triathlon event among women. According to USA Triathlon, 39.5% of participants are women and a growing number are first timers that take part in the shorter, sprint triathlons.

As you plan your summer, maybe you are entertaining the idea of participating in your first triathlon. If you’re still unsure, then you may need a little help sifting through all the information out there. Maybe you have had a friend ask you to race with them and you don’t even know what a triathlon is. We like to break the sport down into 3 main aspects: Planning, Training and Racing.

For starters let’s define a triathlon: A triathlon is a race consisting of 3 sports – swimming, biking and running (in that order) in a timed event. The 4 most popular triathlon distances are Sprint, Olympic, half-Iron Man and full Iron Man. There are also duathlon events – bike/run, swim/bike, swim/run.

Racing:

The swim “leg” can range in length from 400 or 500 yards (Sprint distance) to 2.4 miles (Ironman). The bike portion is 10 miles (Sprint) to 112 miles (Ironman), and beyond (Ultra).

The run is generally no shorter than a 5k/3.1miles (Sprint) and can be longer than a marathon (Ironman is 26.2 mi).

Choosing a race is a very important part of knowing how to train and what kind of results you can expect. You don’t want to start with an Ironman distance race if you have never even raced a Sprint triathlon. Know your current fitness level and choose your race accordingly. You can find a list of races at http://www.trifind.com.

Training:

Training is what you will need to do and it will take up most of your “free time” (8+ hours per week). Training consists of doing the proper workouts for your goal race to ensure you don’t get injured and so that you can complete the race and call yourself a triathlete.

You can find a group to train with, find a coach or you can go it alone. Start training immediately. A common mistake is starting to train too close to the date of the event. Give yourself at least 10-12 weeks to get your body and mind ready.

Planning:

Planning is very important. You will need to plan your current weekly schedule around your training schedule. You will also need to plan for recovery from workouts, recovery from the race and any professional or personal commitments along the way. You will also need to plan on catching up with friends who will miss you while you train for your event. You can celebrate with them afterwards and perhaps they can join you next time. Recruit friends to join you on this journey. It’s more enjoyable and the chance of success is greater if you’re not alone.

Ximena Florez, from New Jersey, trained and ran her first triathlon last year. After seeing her photo afterwards she commented “by looking at my smile, you’d think I won the race, but I won much more than that, I achieved something beyond my expectations.”

A triathlon can be a very rewarding experience if you put in the necessary training and recovery, choose the appropriate race for your level, and remember to enjoy yourself. Nothing compares to crossing the finish line of an event that you worked so hard to get to.

Good luck. Train hard, have fun and we will see you at the start line somewhere.

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