Triathlon Tips and Tricks (Friday Five Edition)

Growing up I did a lot of swimming and biking.  Now that I had added running into my life, I thought it was about time that I try to do a triathlon.  In 2013 I did my first tri and since I have done 3 more sprints and one Oly.  I have posted some things about swimming and biking as I am currently training for another sprint tri.  Here are some things that I have learned along the way.  Please keep in mind, all of this is from my experience and things that I have read.  Other races might be different.

1. Distances - For those that are new to triathlons it is made up of a swim leg, a bike leg, and a run leg.  99% of the time they are done in that order.  I have done a reverse Tri which I did the run, bike, then swim.  I really like that one, but I can see why they do it in the order that it is.  I was so tired by the time I got to the swim that I had a hard time breathing and swimming so I walked a lot in the shallower part of the pool.  There are 4 main distances in triathlons just like in running. 

• Sprint - The sprint is the one that has the most fluctuation on what distances they offer, but for me I see it as the equivalent of a 5k in the running world.  It is usually where most people start before the bigger races.  The swim is usually anywhere between 300-800 meters, the bike anywhere between 10-20 miles, and the run anywhere between 1-4 miles (but is usually a 5k).
• Olympic (or Oly) - This usually has a standard distance for everything.  It is a 1.5k (or almost a mile) swim, 40k (or 25 mile) bike ride, and a 10k (or 6.2 miles) run.
• Half Ironman (or 70.3) - Ironman is a brand, so not all 70.3 are called a half Ironman, though it is a common name like Band-aid or Kleenex.  The distance is always the same, as it adds up to 70.3 miles.  The swim is 1.2 miles, the bike is 56 miles and the run is a half marathon (13.1 miles).  One day I hope to do this distance.
• Ironman (or 140.6) - This is the distance I always think of a marathon distance in the run world.  It's that thing that you always wonder if you can do, but know you have to put your full attention towards it.  The distances are 2.4 miles for the swim, 112 miles for the bike, and a full marathon (26.2 miles). 

There are a lot of different distances in between these, just like running.  There are even ultra-triathlons, which are any distances above 140.6, just like ultra-marathons are any distance over 26.2.

Me and my Oly medal

2. Training - For my first triathlon, the thought of the training was very overwhelming as I didn't know how to get everything in and what to focus on.  For one sport it is easy to focus on speed and form and all the little things.  But when you have 3 to train for, IMO, not one will be perfect.  When I'm in tri training, things get dropped.  I'll miss some of my gym classes (weight training) and I won't run as much as I usually do.  I know some of the training plans for a full Ironman you can have 2 workouts a day.  I don't know if I'm willing to put that much dedication into it, so for now, the full is not anything that I want to do.  But maybe if I drop 50 pounds. :)

For my first tri in 2013 I joined a group that was training specifically for that triathlon.  My first was an all girl sprint, which most women in my area use as a first tri.  Which meant, that everyone that was training was all women and most have never done a tri.  So we were all in good company not really knowing what to expect.  The group made us a training plan to follow and we met on Saturday mornings where we would have a clinic of sorts about running or biking or transitions and then head out to do our brick workout.

Ladies from the tri training group.

A brick workout is an important workout to have during your training.  This is where you do your bike workout and then you do your run (weather it's just a mile or your full run workout).  What this does is condition your legs to go from biking mode to running mode.  It is called a brick because when you get off the bike and try to run, your legs feel like bricks.  It's the weirdest sensation.  They suggest to do at least a mile after the bike ride because that is about how long it takes for that feeling to go away.

Most groups that put on triathlons will have clinics.  I highly recommend attending these, especially if you are new to the sport.  The clinics are usually on the course, so you can get comfortable before your race.  I will always try to make at least the swim clinics, especially the open water ones, as that allows me to swim in an environment that I couldn't on my own.  If you feel weak in one area, join a group.  If the swimming leg scares you, take some lessons.  While you will have butterflies before a race, in a triathlon, you really should feel comfortable in all areas.

3. Transition - I think this was the scariest thing my first time.  I knew nothing about how to go from swimming to biking to running.  I had never seen a tri and the whole concept of the transition area was so foreign.  With my training group we did have a clinic session about transition and it explained a lot, though I was still overwhelmed by the thought.  Basically the transition area is where your bike and other equipment is while you are doing the other legs.

The area is full of racks where you can place your bike.  There are several bikes that can be put on each rack.  All of the triathlons that I have been to have had assigned racks.  This is based on bib number and usually each rack has assigned numbers to them.  So one rack might hold bib number 1-6 and the next will hold bib number 7-12.  If you have bib number 5 you can rack it anywhere on that first rack.  I like to get there early to make sure I can rack my bike on the outside and not be in the middle of everyone.

Transition before the race

Along with your bike, you will have everything you need for all three legs.  Most people put a towel down in their area to mark their spot.  The spots are tight, so it's best not to hog too much space up.  Since most tris start with the swim, everything for the bike and run should be setup and easy to get to.  For sprints, everyone tries to get through each transition as quickly as possible.  For halfs and full Ironmans people take a little more time.  There is even a place to change clothes between the different sports.  Transitions can be stressful as you are trying to do a lot of different things quickly, but if you are organized and practiced, it's not too bad.

4. Clothing - Clothing can be a challenge in any sport, but when you are doing three back to back, it becomes even more of a challenge.  Unless you are doing a longer tri where there is a place to change, you will wear the same thing for the whole race.  You can wear what makes you comfortable to get through everything, but most people wear Tri Kits or Tri Suits.  The kit is a two piece top and shorts while the suit is all in one.  The idea of these is that it's form fitting enough to not cause a drag in the water at the same time giving you a little bit of padding for the bike without feeling like a diaper when it gets wet.  It's made of material that is quick drying, especially with the wind of the bike after the swim.  

I have used both.  Some people, especially guys, can get away with something different, but I have to have a sports bra to run.  So I will wear that under my top, even during the swim.  Like bike shorts, most people usually don't wear underwear under the shorts as that can cause more chafing, especially when they are wet.  I really hate wearing either because they are skin tight and that is not very flattering for me, but I prefer the suit as the top usually rides up on me more then I like with the kit.  The best thing to do is to try different things out and make sure you go for a swim in what you plan on wearing with maybe a run after and see how things feel.

My tri kit

5. Pool vs Open Swim - The swim seems to be the one sport that most people I know say is the reason they haven't done a tri.  I grew up swimming, so I have never really had those concerns, but I do understand them.  The swim portion of triathlons are either in a pool or open water (a river, ocean, or lake).  Being new to triathlons, I knew I didn't want to add stress to it all and do an open water, so I opted for one that was a pool swim.  The rest (except for my reverse tri) have been open water.  

A pool swim is done where you swim down a lane and back in the same lane on the other side.  Then you go under the lane marker and go up and down the second lane.  This is repeated through the whole pool.  So the length of the swim for that particular tri is usually how big the pool is.  An 8 lane pool will usually be a 400 meter swim.  Everyone is lined up in the order of how fast they predict they are and one by one in about a 15 second delay jump into the pool and start swimming.  What I don't like about pool swim is that people usually don't put the right time down or they have a better or worse swim then they have had in practice.  And as you can imagine when you have people swimming up and down the same lane, it is hard to pass or get passed.  So if you need to pass someone, you tap their foot and at the end of the lane they are supposed to wait and let you pass at that point.  So the congestion bothers me enough to prefer open water swim.  But the nice thing about the pool swim is that if you feel uncomfortable at all you can walk the lanes and hold onto the lane markers if you want.  Like any type of race (especially the beginning) adrenaline, nervousness and excitement all hit, adding water to the mix sometimes is not the best combination.  So it's nice to be able to know you can hold onto something if needed.

Open water is basically any body of water.  I've only done them in the river here.  In open water there are several waves.  When it's time for a wave to go everyone in the wave gets in the water and stays behind the start buoys till the start is announced.  Because it's harder to see where you are going, there are one colored buoy to mark the way and if there is a turn a second color buoy is used.  They have volunteers in kayaks that are out there if anyone needs any type of help, even if it's just holding on to catch your breath.  Some people don't like open water swims because people will bump into you and maybe even try to swim over you because they are not paying attention to others around them.  I just start far away from the main group, even if that means I will swim a little bit of a longer distance.  I'm not out there to win, I'm out there to finish.  One of the open water tris that I have done has swim angels.  They are volunteers that will swim next to you to help you feel more comfortable. They are there to guide your way help if needed.  Also with an open water swims there is always the potential to wear a wet suit.  You can only wear a wet suit if the water temp is below a certain temperature.  Everyone that has done a lot of tris get really excited for the races that allow wet suits in as it's supposed to help you float, therefore makes you faster as you are not putting in extra energy into floating.  I have never used one, and in fact it really intimidates me as the only time I have is when I have Scuba Dived and I just remembered hating putting one on and taking it off.  But the nice thing is, most tris that allow wet suits have volunteers after you get out of the water to help you pull it off.

The river before we started

Bonus:  If you have had the want to do a triathlon but one or more legs of the race intimidate you, you have options.  Volunteer!  A great way to see how things are done and give back to the community at the same time.  Another thing you can do is sign up for the Aquabike division, where you only do the swim and bike.  Or you could grab one or two friends and do a relay.  Each one of you do one of the legs of the race (with a 2 person team one of you will have to do two of the legs).

Sorry, this post has gotten very long.  I hope you made it through it all.

Is a triathlon something that is on your bucket list?  Have you ever done one?  Do you have any other tips?  Anything that you might want more information on that I could incorporate into another post?

I'm linking up with Fairytales and Fitness and Running on Happy for Friday Five 2.0

Running 23 Miles with Matthew (Weekly Wrap-up Edition)

So on Saturday, I ran 23 miles with Hurricane Matthew.  While we didn't get a direct hit, we got a lot of rain and some wind.  Not bad enough to cancel the run, but enough for it to be a very wet run.

Monday I didn't go out for a run as I didn't have time.  Plus I kinda counted the hiking we did on Sunday as a run.  Wednesday I got out there and had a great run.  I worked from home so I ended up being able to run after the sun came up.  I really felt like I was finally getting back to where I was before I hurt my back.  There was a guy that was out there with his dog.  He said he has seen me running a lot and to keep it up.  Makes up for the stupid guy last week. :)

Friday while it was still a good run, I felt slower.  I realized it was a lot more humid on Friday then it was on Wednesday.  I had to go into the office, so I had to run before the sun came up.  This is the time of the year where the acorns are falling from the trees.  They kept hitting different surfaces and freaked me out a bit.  That and the acorns were all over the road and I had to watch myself at some places.

Saturday the long arms of Hurricane Matthew hit us.  The weather was in the upper 60's but there was a lot of rain.  I started off before the MTT group as they only had 20 miles on the docket and I wanted to get in 23.  I ran up and back for an extra 3 miles and then off on the route given to us.  I only had 4 miles that I ran over a 16 minute mile.  I was so impressed with my consistency through the run.  I didn't feel like I ran out of steam at the end like I usually do.

I felt like Matthew was keeping me company on my run.  Most of the time it was a light rain, but every so often it would down pour.  And there would be wind gusts every so often.  Every time the rain or wind picked up, I felt like he was encouraging me to keep going.  I just had to embrace the rain and enjoy what was given to me.

The route that they had for us went through a lot of nice neighborhoods.  It was still a little dark out, but there was a lot of street lights still on.  I ran by this church that had signs of all the terrorist attacks that have happened and at the end is a sign that says "Love One Another".  I was very touched by this.

I also ran by a few houses that had Halloween decorations up.  This was my favorite one.

This same house had a big metal rooster and it really reminded me of The Bloggess.

But most of the run this was my view.  A lot of rain.

And a lot of puddles to watch out for.

I used this run to see what time I would make it for mile 15.5 and mile 18 for MCM.  So that I can beat The Gauntlet, I would have to be there no later then 12:38 PM.  Which means if I cross the start line right at 7:55 AM then I have 4:43 to get there.  If I cross the start line at 8:55 AM then I have 3:43.  I got to 15.5 on my training run in 4:03, which means I have to cross the start line by 8:35 AM or earlier to feel comfortable.

To beat the bridge at mile 18 by 1:15 PM.  That would mean I would need to get there between 4:20 - 5:20.  I got there in 4:40.  Plenty of time after getting past The Gauntlet.  So my main concern will be getting to The Gauntlet on time.

I was still one of the last people that got back to the parking lot.  I just hate that feeling that I know I did great for me, but still one of the last people to finish.  I told one of the coaches that I did an extra 3 miles and he scoffed at me.  The MTT thought of training is that you only need to do 20.  One would think that they would encourage you if you felt better doing something different from that.  There is not one way to train, and I'm doing what is best for me feeling like I can get to the finish line.

When I got home I saw how badly I chaffed.  I used so much Glide on myself because I knew it was going to rain the whole time and it didn't help.  I'm chaffed between my thighs, on my waist, and all around my bra line.  I also wish I had shorts and a sports bra that would treat my body better.  But thank goodness for Aquafur!

So now I have two weeks of tapering and then it's race time, though it really hasn't hit me, yet.  Some people have a hard time with taper time, but I really try to embrace it.  I feel really good about MCM after this run but I know I will be very nervous about beating those times.

Do you ever feel encouraged by the weather, even bad weather?  Do you look forward to taper time or dread it?  

Linking up with Holly and Tricia's Weekly Wrap Up.

Five Random Things (Friday Five Edition)

So I don't have a real good topic for Friday Five so I thought I would just spew some randomness your way.

1. I just re-watched The 4400.  I watched it when it came out the first time around and it's been long enough that most of it was like watching it new again.  For those that have not heard of the show (which I think is most everyone), it's about 4400 people who disappeared over the last 50 years and all come back together through a ball of light.  I don't want to spoil things for anyone but most of these people come back with a power of sorts.  Through the show they are able to share their powers.  So my question that I have been thinking about is would you want a power?  Some of them are cool like healing or seeing the future or reading people's mind.  But others kinda suck like giving people disease or passing on debilitating anxiety.  So would you want one knowing you couldn't choose?  On top of that, people had a 50/50 shot of dying instead of getting a power.  Would you take a gamble?  Honestly, I'd be very tempted.  I'm not much of a gambler, but when I do, I usually go all in.

2.  I'm so sick of being chafed after a long run.  Because my sports bras that I have loved are coming to their end of life and if you have been reading my blog, you know my most adored shorts are coming apart at the seams, I've been having to try new items.  I have yet to find a sports bra that will get me over 10 miles before it chafes me.  And I'm tired of spending $60+ on bras that just don't work well.  And I think I've tried them all.  I do have to say that I love Brooks policy that you can try them out and sweat in them and still return, and while I love some of their bras, most are not good for me after 10 miles.  And I lather myself in Glide before every run and still have cuts on me.  Oh and why does any manufacture have to put tags in active wear?  Even if you cut them off, there is that edge of it that digs.

3.  I'm still getting used to the latest update to the iPhone.  Normally you swipe to unlock and now that just brings you to a new screen with news and calendar stuff.  I have to remember to just push the home button.  The texting has a new option to write things with your finger.  It's weird, too.  Oh and the new icons that you can send with a text.  It's sort of like adding a GIF on Twitter.  The Apple Watch got a big update too.  I do like the new face with my activity tracker.  It makes the steps and standing seen, which makes you want to move more.  But my new favorite thing is the Breathe option.  So far it has asked me twice to breathe.  What you do is for one minute you block everything out and concentrate on the watch and your breathing.  I plan on doing it when it asks unless I'm in a meeting or driving or something.

4. I'm thinking of making a shirt to wear at MCM.  I'm still tossing ideas around on what I want it to look like and say.  I want to go for some meaning that the Marines would know or something that expresses my gratitude for their service.

5. It turns out that one of my cats is afraid of thunder.  I've never seen a cat afraid of thunder before.  When I got home last night we had one strike that was close so the thunder made me jump.  It scared Aiden half to death.  The rest of the night while the storm when on he would be laying as flat as he could next to me in the kitchen and then ended up hiding in the bathroom.  No matter what I did, I couldn't seem to calm him, so I just left him in the bathroom to sooth himself.

Oh one more thing.  I just watched the second episode of Designated Survivor and I am totally in love with this show so far.  I hope it keeps up.

Are your pets afraid of thunder?  Do you like the new upgrade to the iPhone?  Would you want a super power?

Linking up with Courtney, Mar & Cynthia