Triathlon Training...Can't Swim, Can't Bike...

So....

I decided to do my first SPRINT SPRINT triathlon last May. My brother was mostly my inspiration, who was doing his first as well. Also, I have a little boy, and wanted to know how to swim and bike and thought this would be a good way to learn!

Here was my training schedule:

Week 1: 3 nights/week after baby down. Swim technique & Cardio: Mastering this new cardio via doggie paddle (I started from scratch, only being able to doggie paddle 13meters. I worked on my ability to just do that, and got up to 2 laps in the pool, or 100meters--bear in mind, I had just run a marathon so I already had some cardio)

Week 2: One hour 3 nights/week: Swim technique: Husband taught me to breast stroke. Worked on technique and being able to go 100 meters nonstop

Week 3: One hour 4nights/week: Swim technique: Husband taught me to freestyle. This took ALL my time as my body is not very buoyant. Up to 100 meters

Week 4: 30min 3/week: Swim tech and Cardio: Practiced swimming laps freestyle! Got up to 250meters. Running: 45min during day w/stroller twice: four and five miles. Biked once, 6miles. (Spent first 30 minutes with husband teaching me how to get on bike, use brakes and gears, which I still don't understand fully)

Week 5: 30min 3/week: Swim Cardio: Swam 300-400 meters nonstop the first two nights, and almost a mile the third time.

Week 6: 45min 2/week: Swam a mile twice. Ran 7.5miles once, right after the swim. Next day I got a 1.5hr deep tissue massage, which in combo with all the muscle activity, hurt me. So I was sore for a week solid, going into the race. Stupid.

Week 7: Race. Was very ouch. Because I had only been on a bicycle ONE time in this entire training....I was hurting and further injured my already-sore hamstring. I also hurt my gastroc(calf muscle). I really should have given myself longer to train (so I could incorporate bike), or cut my swim training in HALF since my race was only a few laps in the pool, and NOT an entire mile.

Rookie mistake.

First triathlon: Why tri?

Why haven't I been blogging as much lately? First of all, still recovering from party-madness. We had honey-bear's first bday, then Honey-Bear's 30th birthday, after which I collapsed. How is it so exhausting throwing parties? I feel guilty  for being tired because I had so much help from Grandmas! But it does wear you out, in addition to teething/baby hating whole milk/ poopies out the wazoo.

Whew.

Got the idea from my brother, who is doing the Ironman in 2012. Not to mention.....I have an irrational fear of both bicycles and open water. (& middle eastern camel spiders eating my flesh in my sleep, but nevermind that). I thought doing a tri could help me overcome a fear of these things. So I had to sign up for one because I knew if I didn't, I would forever be tormented by my lack of basic-life skills that will make me an uptight-non-risk-taking-Claire-from-ModernFamily-kind-of mom if I don't learn at some point. Plus, I have a son.

And, who knows, triathlons might be an easier hobby than running to maintain as I age, right.

Wrong.

Not only is triathlon-training more schizophrenic to plan (baby napping/varying time each takes/husband's schedule/weather), it is way expensive. You have to buy: a bike (we didn't own one), bike shoes, helmet, bike shorts, wetsuit if you're hardcore, gloves, camel-back, cushioned bike seat, swim gear if you're a pansy like me (nose plug/good goggles/swim cap), and then running shoes. Plus gym membership.

High maintenance=not my style.

But, of course I didn't know this going into it. So here I am, committed. But it's actually not so bad--  borrowed a bike from my step-mom, am using our neighborhood pools, and will just have to buy all the other junk I will never want to use again. (Fortunately, Justin is starting triathlons so he'll just use all the stuff). I'm actually growing a lot! (both as a person, and physically...my calves are the size of my face I fear )

My training so far? Well, it's working out well! I *actually know how to swim now!! It's incredible. Years of swim lessons as a kid did nothing for me, but pressure to not to humiliate myself in front of hundreds of meat-y athletes did the trick. Justin&I spent the first week of 'training' learning how. It took me every night that week but by the end, I was swimming laps! That was week one, then last week, I kept pushing myself to go 400 meters straight. This week I went on my first bike ride--6miles of hills. (It's amazing how motivated you become when the other option is walking home...) The biking was the hardest. I will say that marathon-training gave me a good base, so the cardio isn't as difficult as it would have been, but it was awful.  I thought swimming would be a nightmare, but I actually enjoy the swimming, and it's the biking that feels stressful and time-consuming. Kinda like driving. Have to use your brain and junk.

Because even though Justin already laughs a little too hard when we watch her,  I refuse to become Claire Dunphy.