10 Reasons why Triathlon is a Pain in the A$$

I am enjoying Triathlon but boy is it a huge pain in the ass!

Here are ten reasons why:

1. Waking up at Ass O'Clock in the morning. Triathlons never start at a lovely 10 AM. No. They start friggen early which means that you need to be at transition and set up at the crack of dawn. It's dark and sometimes cold. If you are training for a bigger distance Ass O'clock in the morning time probably extends beyond race day and to your daily training days.

2. The Swim. Right off the bat you are likely finagling your way into something ghastly like a wetsuit  and then at ass o'clock in the morning you are throwing yourself into some sort of body of water. Sometimes it's a calm, temperate lake (lucky you!) and sometimes it's a smelly dirty pond or a cold choppy ocean. But often no matter what the water, you are getting kicked in the face or elbowed in the ribs by fellow triathletes. Joy.

cold, wet suit, ass o'clock in the morning. Don't let the smiles fool ya... ;)

3. The Stuff. Triathlon. Requires. Stuff. Lots and lots of stuff. you'll need a tri kit, wetsuit, swim goggles, swim cap, bike, bike helmet, USAT card (or one day pass)  running sneakers and that's the bare-bone minimum. As you grow with the sport your stuff will grow. You'll likely want a transition bag, clip in pedals and bike shoes, nutritional needs, tire changing kit, race belt, tri-training watch, gym membership (with access to pool), tri coach (or at least tri training plan), sports sunglasses, visor, you might want even want a fancy tri bike. This sport just requires crap-loads of stuff.

New "used" bike

4. Expense. Well, holy crap this is not a poor man's sport. Just take a look at number 3 and keep in mind I probably forgot a 100 things or so that you can buy in the quest of triathlon. The bike alone can set you back several hundred (on the cheap side) to several thousands of dollars. Combine that with the entry fees of the races, the wetsuit and the other gear and you'll soon be trying to figure out a way to pay for your new-found hobby too.

5. Getting your stuff there. So you live in Jersey and want to race in California. Good luck. In addition to the expense of the race fee, and your airline ticket and your hotel stay - you will have to haul your crap clear across the country. So get ready to pay for essentially the cost of another passenger to ship your bike (or rent a bike on location) at the nifty 'location' venue.

6. Nutrition. If you're aiming to conquer a half iron or full iron distance (70.3 or 140.6) you will have to figure out how to NAIL your nutrition. And what I mean by that is how much you should eat and drink on the bike and run. This is critical. Super critical. There is an art to this and it varies for each person. Not enough and you'll "bonk" bringing your epic day down to your shaky knees and have too much and you'll be visiting every port-potty along the way. It's a trying process to get this right and once you do you better make sure to have it/pray that you don't lose anything while biking.

7. The Bike. The bike is a pain in the ass. (I know, I know. The bike is likely your favorite part of triathlon but it is still a bit of a pain)  You have to transport it, you have to maintain it, you have to master it. You have to know mechanics like how to change a tire, you have to worry about distracted drivers and you have to always be on-guard to be safe.

8. The Hunger. I am always hungry. This is a pain in the ass (at least for me) if you're (like me) and trying to lose weight. Oh well. Pass me a sandwich.

9. The training time.  You will be always thinking about how and when you're going to get that training in. This gets worse as you go higher in race distance.

10. The Addiction! You will curse the expense and all the pain in the ass reasons that exist in triathlon yet find yourself somewhat obsessed and addicted to this sport!!

All kidding aside,  I am loving triathlon and am now obsessed. And if you can say that after all the good P.I.T.A. reasons to run in the opposite direction then you know you're on the right path... even if that path is at "Ass o'clock" in the morning ;)

Newbies, don't be afraid. Give it a tri.  The water feels great (I could be lying) but still... you'll never know if you don't jump in!

What makes triathlon a pain in the ass to you despite your love for the sport?

xo
Jen

Reviewing 2013 goals and looking ahead to the New Year

Happy New Year! 

Fat to finish line on The Today Show! I'm in the hat bottom rt

In January 2013 I ran Ragnar Miami with team Fat To Finish Line and we were even featured on The Today Show! But even with how awesome that experience was (It was one of the best events of my life), I seriously cramped and couldn't complete the 10 mile run during my second leg and that bummed me out. That first experience of 2013 kind of summed up the year - one of extreme highs and lows. 

I also participated in my first of two triathlons, (getting back in the water and on a bike) and managed to keep moving forward. I had some tough days - I've struggled with weight and running as far/fast as I might want.  Here's the overall gist on the year: 

These were the set of goals I wanted to focus on last year - here is how I did:
1. Run more miles this year. In 2012 I ran 721 miles - my goal for 2013 is to run 722. - Ugh. Somehow I only ran 520 this year. I chalk that up to running a few less half marathons this past year and also training for my first triathlons - instead of always running many workouts became swimming or biking focused. Still - this is pretty weak - I'm aiming for 722 in 2014 again! 

2. Run faster?  No way - not even close. But to be fair I didn't focus on speed and didn't make it a priority. 

3. Cross train seriously. I will be taking yoga, boot camp and incorporating more strength training into my regime. I consider this somewhat successful. I did make a better attempt at boot camp, yoga and stretching - I will continue to focus on this and this is a big goal of mine in the new year. 

4. Maintain my goal weight. Total fail - I struggled with weight this year and am over goal as of right now. It's been making me feel really low and yucky about myself but I'm working on shaking off the feelings of failure and getting my groove back - this topic is it's own blog. 

5. DRINK MORE WATER! Seriously. I have such a hard time with this but in 2013, hydration will be my bitch. Up and down - had some really great "water" streaks and had some times where I was woefully under-hydrated. Hydration is huge for me -- must continue to work on it. 

6. Keep this blog going. Yup. 

7. Eat even cleaner. Nope. Probably ate dirtier but will be cleaning up my act for 2014 

8. Track my food at least one week a month (will help me with #4 and #7 and keep me on my game) - this would've been a great idea if I remembered even making this a goal!  So, no this didn't happen. 

9. Run 4 half marathons and at least 2 5k races - to keep training for stuff. - I didn't run four half marathons I ran two halfs, 1 10 miler, 2 sprint triathlons and a few 5Ks - I'm OK with my race schedule. 

10. Run another full marathon? Maybe. Once again I will throw my hat in the ring for NYC marathon. If I get in, I will train. I have no other plans to run a full right now - with a new TV show in the works and the film -- I don't want to fully commit yet… (I know that's lame.) Nope. But I'm re-entered in the NYC marathon lottery so maybe that will happen this year. 

11. And I know this is lame too. I still really want to try a tri. I am still struggling to figure out a bike and pool solution. The gyms with pools are literally 3 and 4 times more expensive than my gym and way out of my budget. Now if some of these projects we are working on generate some money, maybe I can afford to take that plunge - sometime. We'll see. Still putting it out there in the universe just in case I can make something happen. I did this!! Finally something I can proudly check off! I did this twice - I sucked up the expense, joined the better gym and trained. I'm going for it again in 2014 and am already signed up for REV3 OLY Poconos! 

Looking ahead to 2014 here are my top goals:

1. Get back to my goal weight and clean up the bad eating habits I fell into over the course of 2013 - I plan on achieving both by doing the Whole30 program as outlined in "It Starts With Food" 

2. Run / Swim / bike more miles and take training more seriously - I'd like to run at least 2 halfs and do at least 2 triathlons. 

3. Continue to cross train / boot camp / strengthen up

4. Continue to blog

5. Continue to focus on water

6. Be more kind to myself. The last few months I've struggled with weight, food, running and training for various reasons. I am realizing that because of this it's easy for me to slip into feelings of shame, depression, beating myself up, feeling failure, etc. It's not even consciously most of the time. I have to believe I'm not a good or bad person because I've had a perfect food or workout day. And these feelings don't really lead to anything productive. 

Even though it was a far from perfect year I am grateful for it all. It was still an overall successful year. My son is improving, our finances are taking a turn for the better, my company sold and aired it first television show (that has a series pick-up!), I made a goal to TRI and did it. So even though there were some tough times I still can consider 2013 a great year!   

How was your year? What are some of your goals for 2014?

XO
Jen

PS: Beginning on Jan 2 I am going to attempt to blog for 30 days in a row as I document my journey doing the Whole30 program. I talk about the program in my last post found here.

Jumping in the lake feet first

Only two days until my first tri!

HOLY CRAP!

I'm a little nervous but mostly I'm excited to see if I can do it  to DO IT!

Last week I was in KY wrapping up our production and I had the opportunity to swim in gorgeous Lake Herrington.

I also got to try out both a long and short wetsuit, courtesy of one of my best friends and business partner, Angela - who dragged both her wetsuits to KY just for me to try. (Yeah. She's the best.)

First up, trying on the full wetsuit. ohmygod how the hell am I to get into this thing? It was trying to shimmy into spanx that were 10 times to small but harder. I never quite got the crotch part to where it probably should've been but it was good enough.

I looked down at the dark deep water. Hmmm. OK, here goes nothing.

I loved it. It was so much fun and so much better than swimming in a pool. The wetsuit (no matter how annoying) was great too. I felt like a superhero and I felt a million times faster. It was great. I did a quarter of a mile - which is the distance for this weekend.

woo hoo! I didn't drown! 

A few days later I decided to go in the short one.

Short wetsuit was so much easier to get on - and jump.

Well, this day the water was way more still and I kept having the feeling that things in the lake was bumping into me… drift wood? Fish? Turtle? Loch Ness monster? I don't know but I started to get a little freaked out but still - I went for a half of mile and felt victorious.

mental note: low bun to avoid scary cone-head look

I am so glad I got some open-water swimming in while away.

And when not swimming - kicking up my feet and relaxing on a boat wasn't half bad either ;)

Angela's feet left / my feet right 

See you on the other side of my first triathlon!! ;-)

Do you prefer swimming in a lake, the ocean or a pool?

PS: I still have to pick a winner from the giveaway. I'm sorry I'm tardy with that. Will do that this by next week.

XO

Jen

Thinking of trying a triathlon

I am back from Maine and I just have to say, what an incredible trip. It was awesome to finally meet Jen and Jason in person and even more awesome to be able to root them across the finish line of their half distant (70.3) REV3 triathlons.

While in Maine we made other new friends too. Marc from Jen's Tri group, Dawn - Jen's bff, Scott and his wife Christine (other tri folk friends of Jen's) and Matty O. and his wife Heather. It was pretty great.

jason, jen s and marc

Here is what I loved about the REV3 race (from a spectator's perspective). The staff seemed warm and cheerful - everywhere I went, I saw smiling faces and people genuinely enjoying their jobs. I liked the family atmosphere that was created - athletes could choose to cross the finish line with their kids. I also liked that everyone gets a free finish line photo.

But the best part? The absolute awesomeness that occurs for the last few racers. The REV3 team, volunteers and remaining spectators line the finish corral shoot to welcome in the last runner. It was so special. The DJ blasts "Sometimes I get a Good Feeling" and everyone becomes exuberant with anticipation; clapping, dancing, hooting and rooting as that finisher rounds the corner. It's really special.

You're talking someone who's been out there for 8 hours or so. Most spectators and racers are long gone, but this last person is someone who has never given up, not thru the swim, bike or run. Someone who made a deal with herself to finish no matter what. I get choked up just thinking about it. So this person comes in to everyone cheering, high-fiving her and her name being announced like she just won the Boston Marathon. It was amazing.

cheering on the last racer she's right ahead of the multisport ministries dude
I'm in purple on the left Jen S and Matty O are next to me
photo credit: REV3

So now, of course, I want to do a tri. Now this isn't as impulsive as it seems. I've been fascinated with triathlon for quite sometime but has let the logistics of not having a bike or pool stand in my way.

I have simply decided that I will overcome those obstacles. My Mom In Motion coach, Dana might just be able to lend me a tribike to train on and use thru my first sprint (my first sprint would be spring 2013) and there is a gym within 15 miles that does have a pool (I'd have to join it - not ideal and more expensive but I could make that happen.)

And Ang. who got me on the running path keeps talking about training and how fun it would be to come back next year, and...

I'm throwing it down. I'm putting it in the universe. I will run my first sprint this spring and my first Olympic distance next August. In Maine REV3. Oh yes I will.

PS: On my run today, I wore a Quassy REV3 visor that I bought at the EXPO and fantasized all about my swim/bike/run future during the whole 6 miles. The visor and vibe made me feel already like a tri person and I could SWEAR that the hard core bikers in my park nodded their respect at my visor. (Yeah, I'm sure I'm projecting that - but whatever.)

after my run in my REV3 hat and feeling
very triathlete-ish

Have you ever done a tri? what kind of advice would you give a newbie? What's your big "scary" next goal you want to go for?

XO
Jen

PS: Please support the little, inspirational running documentary film, From Fat To Finish Line, that I'm trying to produce. We desperately need your help. Pledging gets you cool stuff - bumper stickers, DVD's, bling, even an Exec. Producer credit! Check out the trailer and see if you can help here.