Triathlon Training

About 4 years ago I took my girls to the beach and as we arrived the TriWildwood Triathlon had ended and I saw all of these people with these fabulous medals.  I did not know what was going on but I wanted one of those medals!  I went home and googled the event and found it is billed as the best beginner friendly triathlon and it is right in my backyard!  At the time I did not do any exercise regularly, if the mood struck I would do some sort of weight training or aerobics but I was far from consistent.  About a year into running I thought about the triathlon again and figured I could do the sprint distance, a quarter-mile swim, ten-mile bike, and a 5K run.  Before I dared to sign up I figured I would see if I could do the three activities back to back. It was not pretty and I was done for the rest of the day but I was able to swim about a quarter-mile in the pool, change then go for a ten-mile bike, after another short break I went out for a run.  I only ran about 2 miles and walked the last but with practically no training I was happy with my effort.  After all that I did not sign up for the tri and put it off a bit longer.  Then the stars aligned and I knew I was to take on this endeavor, the tri would fall on my 50th birthday!  How could I ignore this?  So I took the leap and signed up.  As covid changed the world that we knew I still held onto hope that the event would occur, researching and training.  The event was canceled and I deferred. As things started to return to the new normal the event was going to be held but moved up a month, coming off marathon training I felt I would be alright with just a six-week training plan.  I found a plan for the longer olympic distance figuring I should be able to swim further than required for safety as I am used to swimming in a pool and there are more variables when swimming in the ocean.  The longer runs would also be good for me since I was used to them already and to push further on the bike could hurt either.  The first three weeks I missed quite a few training sessions or shortened them to fit into my life.  In weeks four and five I completed each one!  The final week I tapered and worked on transitions.  I had planned to do an ocean swim and ride the actual bike course before the event but I never got around to it. A week out I did a practice tri and tested out how I would wear my hair and if I had all the needed gear. I am glad I did this as the hair needed to be changed and I learned I run better with my hydration pack than a handheld water bottle.  I was as ready as I was going to be!  Stay tuned for my race report!