March 2012I can’t believe it’s been more than a year since I first starting writing the blog “Give It a Tri.” My life has changed so much since January 2011 when I decided I signed up for the Iron Girl Triathlon. I’ve lost over 20 lbs; I’ve competed in three triathlons, and I’ve gone from barely being able to run five minutes at a time to over two hours for my long run this week. Last year, I proved to myself that I am still an athlete and I can do anything I put my mind to. Never in a million years would I have ever thought of doing a triathlon. Now, I’ve not only done one, I have plans to keep going with even longer distances.
Since I last wrote, I competed in the Nickel City Triathlon in Buffalo, NY in September 2011. I finished third in my age group (out of four). But, hey, I still placed, and it was a great experience. I didn’t do nearly enough training as I should have for that one. Plus, it was the end of September in Buffalo, so it was a bit chilly too. But it was an awesome event. I had a lot of fun with it. And I knew that I had bigger dreams for this year.
Here’s my plan for this year:
1. A half marathon before Triathlon training really starts
2. Syracuse 70.3 Half Iron Man Relay with Sarah Bettinger and Sharon BuMann. I will be doing the swim portion. Sharon will be biking and Sarah will be running. That’s June 24th, the day before my 25th birthday.
3. Compete in an Olympic distance triathlon. I’m signed up for “A Tri in the Buff” at Evangola State Park near Buffalo. That Race is July 7th. Our Meteorologist Dan Russell will be competing in the Olympic distance as well, and a few of my friends from Fleet Feet’s training program last year will be doing the “Try a Tri” with their children.
4. Iron Girl! I’m already signed up for Iron Girl, which is a good thing because it sold out in 25 hours, back in November! One of my good friends from home is coming up to compete as well.
5. Maybe another half Marathon.
6. Get Married!
In the off-season, I’ve been mostly focusing on my running. I’ve taken a couple spinning classes, and I teach swimming twice a week. Running is my weakest point, so that’s been my biggest focus. Last year, my longest long run was 75 minutes. I just couldn’t seem to get over that hump. After continuing training, I finally ran 90 minutes. I stayed between 75 and 90 for a while. Then, one long-run day, I felt so good, I just kept going and ran 105 minutes. Then 110 minutes. Then 115. And finally, I’ve run a two hour long run three times now. I’m still slow, but I can’t believe how long I can run for now. I’ve actually started to enjoy it, which YMCA running coach Kevin Collins, said I would. I didn’t believe him. But alas, he was right…again! I feel awesome about my running. I’ve had a perfect log sheet for two months straight, with just one day off per week. I want to keep focusing on my running before tri training makes life crazy!