Why I Tri

Hey hey friends! How bout an oldie but goody! I save drafts whenever I do a guest post, and I came across this one while doin' a little clean up.  It's been a mess of a day on my end, so this helps out my posting sanity as well.  Read on..... :-)

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Hello, blogworld! My name is Rae and my little corner of the blog world is Tri’ing for Balance, where I talk about (shockingly) triathlon training, healthy/unhealthy eating, staying fit, and balancing it all in the real world without going crazy! (Most of the time).

I have asked to share with you “Why I Tri”, and of course, I am happy to oblige! I’ve been a triathlete for six years now, and have competed in the four main distances (Sprint, Olympic, Half Ironman and Ironman) but back in 2005….if you would have asked me to run a mile, I would have laughed at you. Let me ‘splain a bit more.

Rewind to July 2005. My then boyfriend (now husband) of about a month starts talking about this weird race called “Ironman”. He says it sounds fun…. It’s 2.4 miles of swimming, 112 miles of biking and26.2 miles of running, to boot! I just laughed…kickboxing class, sure, all that swimming, biking AND running a marathon ….um, no. “Well, there’s a sprint race coming up next month”, he said…”I’m gonna do it”. And I’m thinking…ok, .5 mile swim, 12 mile bike, 5k run….ehh, I haven’t run since high school, rode a bike since I could drive but I do know how to dog paddle….so I said…Ok! I’m not really a sit and watch kinda girl, so let’s do this thing! Fast forward to our first ride together, where I fell over at a stop sign onto him (yeah, I wasn’t wearing clip in shoes). Oiy...what a beginning! Well, because I’m stubborn, after a month of training, I crossed the finish line of my first tri, hand in hand with my man ( I knew he was a keeper). I dog paddled the swim. I rode the bike on a $50 Target bike. And I ran the 5k in Walmart sneakers. Yup, I was hard core.

But then I was hooked. Through the next four years, I slowly built up my race distances and gear quality (Yes, this is an expensive sport, but if you shop for deals and pick up pieces slowly, it’s not that bad). The boyfriend became my husband, I did my first marathon, my first half ironman, and then in 2010….my first Ironman.

Lake Placid. Easily the (second) best day of my life. (If I didn’t count my wedding day first, I think I would be a single lady again :-D) I finished my first Ironman in 13:xx hours, not fast by any means (people win this race in 8 hours, cut off is 17 hours), but perfectly respectable and I HAD SUCH A GOOD TIME. 13 hours of putting myself through 140.6 miles? WHY WOULD SOMEONE DO SUCH A THING?

Well I’ll tell you… “Why I Tri”

1. Because it’s fun. Tell me quick what you did when you were a kid….you played tag (running)? You rode bikes till dinner? You did cannonballs in the pool? Yup, you were a triathlete. Anytime I get to act like a 6 year old again works for me.
2. Because it’s interesting. I love running and marathon training. But it’s all running (yeah, I’m a smarts one like that). With tri’s, cross training is built right in. It doesn’t get boring. And the chance of injury is much lower because you are working different muscle groups.
3. Because, as a whole, triathletes are fun (though slightly crazy) people. Most of the people I have met through this sport are amazing, funny, humble people. They KNOW they are crazy for calling a 100 mile bike ride fun, but hey, you’re there too, so let’s tell jokes and get each other to the finish line for the beer, mmm k?

4. It can be social…but also reflective. Races are super fun because you can meet people and see your friends….but if you like longer distance tri’s (like I do), you can have time to yourself to train as well. 3 hour runs. 6 hour bike rides. You can get a lot of thinking done that way…and sort out your frustrations with the world (I swear I cured the common cold during a long run last January, but forgot it before I got home to write it down...kidding!) It’s also worth noting that a Sprint or Olympic race can be done on 4-6 of training per week, so you don’t need to dedicate your life to the sport unless you want to!
5. It’s pretty easy to set PR’s (personal records)…at least at first! 4 different commonly known distances (Sprint, Olympic, Half Ironman, Ironman) all with 3 different legs = 16 PR possibilities! (each leg plus overall race time). Since most of us strive for improvement once we’ve raced, it’s awesome to have more than an “all or nothing” approach! And the longer you go, the more PDR’s (Personal distance records) you can set, as well as achieving significant race PR’s (I took over an hour off my first IM time when I did my second….boy did I feel hardcore!!)

6. Simply put, I love the feeling. Of the adrenaline at the start…hearing the gun go off. Of swimming with the fishes. Of flying on the bike, wind in my face, sunshine streaming down my back and reminding me how happy I am to be alive. Of running with my friends and co-racers, a kind word of encouragement, as we all work toward a common goal…the finish. Of crossing that line, out of breath, endorphins kicking in, realizing that I DID IT, and wondering when I can race again! That makes the training worth it for me!

7. Because I can. Saved the best one for last. I’m not fast. As a matter of fact, until this past year I had a hard time even calling myself an athlete (I’m working on it). But after over 40 tri’s, 2 marathons, 6 half marathons and dozens of smaller road races, I realized that an “athlete” isn’t necessarily a size 2 with 5% body fat. It’s someone who toes the line after putting hours of training in to do something they (hopefully) love. My body might not be perfect, but my legs, lungs, heart and other parts all work together to get me to the finish line, usually smiling!, at the end of the race. And if my body can, and my mind can, than I certainly want to! And I love every minute of it.

I know it sounds trite, but believe me, if I can be a triathlete, anyone can. I wasn’t an athlete when I toed the line at my first tri in 2005. But I was when I finished. I’ve had my fair share of stumbling blocks, of trials and triumphs, and of races “I wish I would have…” (You get the point). But with the help my husband, who introduced me to the sport, the friends that I have made, who have helped me figure a few things out along the way, and some hardcore stubbornness and dedication, I can say that this sport really has changed my life for the better. Will I ever be a pro? I seriously doubt it. But I’m gonna have fun “tri’ing” my best and racing my heart out, and that’s all that matters!
New to triathlon? Thinking of entering a race or going for Iron distance? I might not be an expert, but I am always open to questions and will share with you what I can! Feel free to email me at raeglaser@gmail.com. Thanks for reading!