Journey to IRONMAN: My first Triathlon…err Duathlon
Here is the latest Journey to IRONMAN post from the lovely @AdaWong3!
With my first triathlon nearing, it began to hit me that I would no longer have the pool as my safety net. Up until now, my only swim workouts have been in the pool and I was beginning to feel nervous about not having the option of holding on, or simply standing up when I felt tired. I knew the only way to calm my nerves was to at least get a feel of what it’s like to be in a lake.
A day before the race, I dragged my friend out in the 90 degree heat with our wetsuits in tow in an attempt to simulate race day. I was hoping the buoyancy in my suit would replace the safety net of the pool- which by the way is what everyone promised. Convinced that I was going to be a sinking ship, I was reluctant to step into a body of water without edges. Did I mention I never learned to tread water? There was no need really…at least not in the pool that was only 5 feet deep. The wetsuit, surprisingly, offered just enough buoyancy for me to tread water rather effortlessly. Without it, I would have turned into a paperweight!
But effortless or not, I was exhausted after an hour and came to the realization that the swim leg was going to be significantly more challenging than I had anticipated. While it’s important to get your pool workouts in, it’s equally, if not more important to practice regularly in open water. But before I had a chance to figure out how I was going to tackle a ½ mile swim, I received an email from the race director notifying us the swim portion had been cancelled. A wave of relief came over me, but was quickly replaced with concern. My end goal isn’t this sprint triathlon, it’s the IRONMAN; and whether or not I like it, I’m going to have to swim.
The Triathlon turned duathlon was tougher than expected—mainly due to the weather. It literally felt like we were in the middle of August! And now that I’ve fully recovered and forgotten the pain, I can say I had a great time! I guess that’s why people keep signing up for these things!
So, I bought myself 2 more weeks to figure out how to be one with the water….
Up next, Wildflower! Everyone promises that I will have the time of my life! Will post pics and tell you all about it when I get back!
