I Blame My Mum

I didn’t start training and competing in triathlons because I had a sudden urge to spend hours on a wind trainer.  Oh no.  My triathlon experience started with a conversation with my mum.

After I had gained around 20kgs during pregnancy (I stopped weighing toward the end) I really struggled with how my body had changed.  Despite being a bookworm growing up, I had always been active and fit and more recently, I had spent a lot of the time lifting at the gym.  Unfortunately after about 6 weeks into the pregnancy, I found that a full time job combined with morning sickness and a 3-4 hour commute left me with no energy to work out and I said hello to tummy settling carbs.  I felt like I had gone from really fit to really fat.  In an effort to combat the frustration I was feeling, I started running.  I had also splurged on a hybrid bike (I was so excited when I cycled for more than 10kms!) and had started swimming after Arya started swimming lessons.  I have a tendency (and I’m sure I’m not alone) to get excited about a new venture so I knew I had to set myself a goal or target before I fell off the bandwagon.  Cue, conversation with my mum, “Why don’t you try a triathlon? You’re already swimming, cycling, and running.” Naturally I thought she was crazy, but she quickly googled Bribie Tri and checked the distances of the Saturday afternoon first timer’s race and it actually look achievable.  I signed up then and there giving myself a whole week to prep.  After that first race I was hooked and mum has patiently been listening me talk about training and races ever since.

After a year and a half of listening to me babble, my longsuffering mum came and supported me at Sunshine Coast 70.3, easily my biggest race to date, enduring crowds and sunburns and it meant the world to me.  She said something after the race though that really caught my attention and encapsulated what I love about the sport.  It was that there were so many different people racing.  It wasn’t always the most athletic people out on the course, but all different sizes, shapes, and speeds.  I’ve been lucky enough to experience the support and encouraging nature of this crazy sport, but sometimes it’s easy to go down a rabbit hole on Instagram and think that everyone is a fit, ripped, spandex clad Adonis.  For an unfamiliar supporter to recognise the diversity and capability of each athlete lining up on the beach, it’s a great reminder that, yes, this sport is nutty, but we will take anyone, from any stage of fitness, and encourage them to achieve goals that they previously thought were unreachable.

So now that I am setting new goals, including a full Ironman, knowing all the time and effort (and money) involved, I am blaming my mum for suggesting that first step and supporting me, (even though she thinks it’s crazy to spend $1,000 on the entry to a single race).  Maybe one day I’ll convince her to give it a tri.

Ironman Sunshine Coast 70.3

Normally I would think that race reports are written by athletes, the people I respect and admire, and mentally I never include myself as an athlete.  I still find it strange to call myself a triathlete, knowing that I am surrounded by strong dedicated people who are achieving high goals.  My efforts in triathlon have not seemed to measure up to that standard, but today I’m going to acknowledge that I did something awesome on Sunday, and I’m stoked! (Full disclosure though, this got longer than I thought…)

And when I say that I did something awesome, that’s only because of the people in my life who have provided a support structure to allow me to do so.  My mum and Mum-in-law have been the biggest help in allowing me training time by watching Arya for me.  Without them, a lot of the more important training sessions would not be possible.  My whole family has helped with early morning and overnight babysitting, and daycare pickups, meaning I could fit in the longer sessions, so a huge thanks to them.  Also, thanks to my coach Mary, who helped guide and support me in the months leading up to the race.

Prep: It doesn’t take very long after getting to know me, to realise that I am not your typical type-A triathlete, so I normally have to double and triple check everything and overprepare, because chances are I have forgotten something, (like the time I forgot my helmet).  Well this race, I had everything, and extras (winning!), but Saturday afternoon I was getting ready for a last dip in the ocean when I got an epic splinter (stake) that had to be cut out.  It seemed silly and of course I was fine, but it was rather tender on Sunday morning so I ended up wasting a lot of time trying to find a med tent, thinking that the bike and run legs might cause a lot of pain with the cut.  I finally gave up, but what I hadn’t double checked myself on Saturday was that the wave starts had changed, so as walked to the start with my training partner to do a final bag drop and wait for our age group to be called, thinking I had 15 minutes to spare, we saw our age group gathered and being given a two minute warning! 30s later I had dropped my bag, grabbed my goggles and cap and was running to the start.  Hands shaking, heart pumping, and twisted goggles, but I made it and started with my AG.

Swim: Once I hit the water I really enjoyed the swim.  I was so distracted that I didn’t even notice the water temperature.  I did think for a moment about how far away those buoys were, but then I realised I swim 500-1000m more than that distance every single training session and after that I was fine.  It was congested in the water which meant stopping occasionally and switching to breaststroke to change direction slightly so I didn’t get a foot in the head, but I ended up moving out from the pack on the return section, so I swam a little further, but it was a lot less annoying.  I swam pretty close to the time I expected (slow), but I was happy with that.  The only annoying thing was that the lifesaver’s shirts were exactly the same orange colour as the buoys!

Ride: I was a little slower out of my wetsuit than I had hoped but I grabbed my gear, loaded up on nutrition, and slapped on some sunscreen.  WOW! Did that pay off!  I’ve seen some horrendous sunburns on Instagram, but sunscreen before the swim and before the ride meant almost no sunburn at all!  Getting out of transition was super congested so that was frustrating, but I got out there and up the hill and away.  I was less familiar with the first section of the bike course out on the highway so I enjoyed the view, but didn’t feel as comfortable as I knew I was in the hinterland section.  I actually stopped and checked my brakes at one point, because even though I had triple checked them, I was losing speed and thought they might have been rubbing.  Turns out it was just my legs losing speed and I just wasted more time… That lead me to thinking about my splits and being able to check them afterwards, which made me think I was so glad I had a timing chip for that, which made me look at my leg and realise that I wasn’t wearing my timing chip… I was actually paranoid I would forget it and had put in on early in the morning, but decided to take it off to put my wetsuit on.  I don’t know what I was thinking, but it made sense at the time.  It obviously never made it back on my leg so I started freaking out a little, but in the end I pulled into the penalty tent and spoke to the official and let him know.  It wasted another minute or so, but he was able to inform the other officials and they had a new timing chip waiting for me in transition before the run.  That off my mind I was able to head for the hills, literally.  I actually love that hilly loop, and I found the congestion on the first lap frustrating, but having been one of the last waves to start, it  cleared up for the second lap. I actually started to worry that I was falling behind but I just picked the person ahead of me and focused until I caught up and then repeated the process until I was back riding past the RTC tent and pumping my fist.

Run: I grabbed my run gear and threw on the timing chip and was off on the run pretty quickly. I was on too much of a high for the little hill to worry me, and as I ran past the RTC tent it was the best feeling.  I knew at that point that cut offs weren’t going to be an issue and I was going to finish this.  There was so much support on the run course and random people yelling my name.  That really freaked me out until I remembered that my name was on my number!  Because this was my first 70.3 I went in with times that I expected for each of the legs, but I hadn’t really planned out a particular pace or HR for the run.  I had only got my distance up to 14kms in the lead up, so I was a little worried, but I had done a half marathon before, and I’m pretty stubborn, so I knew I would complete it. I just wasn’t sure what kind of time it would be. I ended up running a 5 min PB on my last 21.1 and I had competed in a team previously, so was fresh for the run.  I was still slow, but to drop that much time after doing the swim and ride prior definitely showed my training improvement over the last 6 months.  I loved the run! On my way in from my first lap I spotted my crew with RTC, my mum, sis, friend, and daughter.  My heart could not be more full in that moment! As I headed out on my second lap I pulled over and gave my girl a kiss.  Her smile made my day! I was getting really emotional after that!  At the 12km mark things started to feel a little harder, but I passed a friend and tri coach shortly after that who reminded me to pick up my cadence.  After that I had something to focus on instead of just plodding along.  That made such a difference and I think my legs felt better for it and it definitely helped my time. As I passed my club for the final time the atmosphere was incredible.  Everyone was cheering and giving high fives and I kind of lost it after that.  I had a smile plastered to my face, and was totally on a high, but I cried down that hill and heading to the chute.  Let me tell you crying and running is not a good mix.  It makes breathing pretty hard and I hear that’s kind of vital! There’s nothing that could beat running down that chute to the finish line.  I spotted my mum and Arya, and a few other friends who had already finished the race.  I’ve seen the race photos already, and I’m not sure my smile could get any wider!  I finished with a time of 6.22.09 and it was slower than I had hoped, but gave me a good starting point for the next race.

Overall, it was pretty bloody brilliant.  I loved the distance.  The course was amazing. The supporters were awesome, as were their signs! I made some dumb mistakes, as I seem to every race (never the same ones) but I got through it.  I did feel like I had more in me to perform better, so I want to work on focusing in the race and pushing a little harder, but I’m still so proud of what I accomplished.

Now I’m just looking forward to my next 70.3 in February and full IM in 2019!

Bring it on!

Welcome back to my adventure!

Hi! It’s been a while.  Did you miss me?  I’m guessing probably not, because let’s face it, the internet is full of interesting and hilarious things, but I’m back now and looking forward to adding my voice and sharing in a little corner of the world wide web.

It’s probably been nearly 2 years since I last published a blog post, and so much has happened that I don’t think I could ever catch you up, but here’s the gist of it:

1. Arya is now 2!
2. I’m studying Exercise Physiology (STILL)
3. I’m working as a trainer at the Morton Bay Lions AFL Club and thoroughly enjoying it.
4. I have dived head first into the world of triathlon, and have gone from a first timer’s event just over a year and a half ago, to completing my first 70.3 distance race at the Sunshine coast last weekend.
5. I have discovered a life outdoors! I am now hiking, kayaking, camping, and of course swimming, cycling, and running.  Yes, for once in her life, this bookworm has a tan.

Of course, there have been many ups and downs that have taken me through the above 5 points and I have some goals to cover over the next 2 years that will take some grit to accomplish (graduating university), but I feel like I’m stepping into the next phase of life/fitness/motherhood and I’m looking forward to sharing the fun.

Stay posted for a Sunshine Coast 70.3 race report and if you would like to see all the fun my instagram handle is @runtored