I've Entered a Triathlon
When I did my first triathlon, I used my Mum’s friend's OLD road (I’m talking down tube shifters), togs, rugby shorts, and a singlet. It felt like the time I went to a uni toga party without a toga.
WTF am I up to? I’m already anxious about embarrassing myself in a sport I haven’t competed in in almost seven years. If you don’t know, triathlon is a serious vibe. You’re measured on your kit first, performance second. When I did my first triathlon in 2009, I used my Mum’s friend's OLD road (I’m talking down tube shifters), togs, rugby shorts, and a singlet. It felt like the time I went to a uni toga party in “town” clothes (FYKYK). After the race, I googled “triathlon kit”, and my face almost fell off when I saw the price of the stuff. I was 19 y/o, out of home, and financially very much on my own. How I managed to keep in the sport while living off a student loan and summer jobs still blows my mind.
The problem is I still have the same kit from 2016, which was already outdated. So, yes, I have performance anxiety about the race, but more so, I’m worried about rocking a sleeveless wetsuit, a 2009 road bike (analogue shifters 🫣) and a tri suit with all the decals falling off. The good news is I have eight weeks to source a new kit and find a bike to borrow, so I can at least measure up during the pre-race bike racking.
Why Am I Doing a Triathlon?
Last week, I wrote about how I had lost my way since I got injured and the importance of goal setting. I’m a guy who needs a race to work towards. I’m not a full-on exercise addict who “needs” to train to manage their thoughts and emotions. I train to explore my physical limits in collaboration with my mind and science. I consider my body the independent variable in my never-ending scientific experiment to get faster.
Now, I have a goal - A sprint distance, draft legal triathlon: 750 m swim, 20km bike, 5km run. My biggest weakness is the swim. Because the race is draft-legal, you can ride in a bunch. Therefore, the faster you swim, the easier it is to stay ahead of slower swims on the bike because drag in cycling increases exponentially with speed, so closing a gap to riders ahead has a significant, energetic cost.
Currently, I’d swim 750m in around 12:30 min, which is OK but not great. If I can get down around 11min, I should at least be “in the race”. I’d still be 2min off the front, but I’m not expecting to win. I just want to get amongst a bike bunch and experience a race rather than chasing the whole ride after a poor swim.
My cycling should be fine for a 30-minute ride, but I’ll need to work on my accelerations because bunch riding can have massive surges, which, as a runner who tries to run at one pace for X distance, I’m not great at.
Injury update - Stress fracture confirmed
A follow-up x-ray has shown signs of bone repair on my tibia, confirming I had a stress fracture. I’ve got the all-clear to begin my return to running program in October, so I’m backing myself to be back to around 17 min for 5 km in November. I have no idea what that’ll look like off the bike, but I’ll do a couple of tester pre-race to ensure I won’t fall flat on my face!
Training Recap
Week Sixteen - Strava Link
📊8:20 hrs total (TSS 217)
🏃Run = 0
🚵2x MTB = 2:35 hr (55 km)
🚲2x Road Ride = 1:420 hrs (43 km)
🎮1x Zwift = 0:55 hrs (30 km)
Mon - MTB - 1.5 hrs
Tues - Zwift workout - 55 min
Wed - Long MTB - 2 hrs
Thurs - Road ride - 55 min
Sat - Pool Swim - 45 min
Sun - Rest Day (bit of skateboarding 🛹)