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WellaWella Posts: 188
Hi there.



After spending the last year doing the lose weight/get healthier thing I've finally committed myself to competing in a triathlon. The idea came about last year watching the Ironman UK TV coverage and I decided that once I was fit enough I would enter one.



Unfortunately work committments meant that I couldn't do the London Triathlon so back in June February I signed up for the St. Albans Triathlon (sprint distance). Trainings going well and is taking one hell of a committment given work and family life etc but I thought why train for one event. This week I signed up for the Spalding Triathlon also a sprint distance.



My question is this, have I bitten off more than I can chew. The St. Albans Triathlon is on the 2nd July and the Spalding one is the following week on the 9th July.



Any tips for an insane bloke that has well and truly caught the triathlon bug!



Comments

  • madnursemadnurse Posts: 782
    are you mad ????? if madness is based on a social aspect then no not if you look at some of us on here ... in January I decided to a sprint traithlon (singular) this idea kind of snowballed into a one or two more then a few more & before i knew it I was entering sprints, olympics even a middle distance & a marathon ... two of which, like you, are within a week of each other. I guess all triathletes all on the potty side of psychotic (some more so than others). But if there are enough mad triathletes (compared to aparently sane non triathletes) then are we the mad ones ????



    tips that might help you survive (apart from things like avoid over training) see if you can involve your family in some way with your training take swimming biking etc (low level training is good for your recovery) maybe get your wife/girlfriend/partner to help out out at races marshalling (they get allsorts of freebies) or ........ get them to enter a race ....



    admittedly I have tried to implement the above & have achieved only partial success ...



    but mad .. OH YES !!!!!!!!



    ps reading through the forum will help, ask as many "seemingly dumb" questions as you think of ... we have all asked or wished we had asked.



    pps the main peice of advice is plan your training



    madnurse (phil)
  • RewRew Posts: 62
    I've kind of done the same thing. Blenheim Tri sprint and three weeks later Windsor Olympic.

    If you've done the training then it shouldn't be a problem.

    The one thing I would advise is if there is an after race massage on offer then ,and it will not matter about the cost, have one.

    I wish I had after Blenheim but I didn't and had stiff legs for a couple of days after. if your racing the following weekend then you don't want that to put you off.

    Good Luck and let us know how you got on.
  • trichamptrichamp Posts: 22
    I can trump the 2 in 2 weeks lark! I'm doing 2 in 2 days in the middle of June so if you're all mad then I should have been locked in an asylum years ago!
  • madnursemadnurse Posts: 782
    trichamp - consider yourself invited to the helvellyn tri then - just bring your section papers along & jon me & the loon for a "walk in the lakes"



    village idiots, half wits & drop outs may need to think twice about this one



  • WellaWella Posts: 188
    Well that settles it then, I'm not alone in my madness.



    My main concern was recovery between the two so I'm looking forward to the post-race massage already.



    Regarding training, I'm following the 12-week triathlete programme by Tom Holland. It seemed to be the one that I could accomodate most and the trainings going well. Can't believe I've only got 5 weeks until my first triathlon.



    One more question regarding weight/body fat. Most of my training over the last year has been weight training with the cardio coming from playing rugby. I've had lost about 2 1/2 stone and my body fat % had dropped significantly.



    However since I started triathlon training my weight has gone back up by 1/2 a stone, which I put down to muscle gain initially, but my body fat % has also gone back up. Despite this, I look and feel leaner than I have done for about 10 years.



    Anyone else experience this or are my scales just useless.
  • madnursemadnurse Posts: 782
    hi wella .......... unless you need a ripped torso for you latest sponsorship deal and are making gains within your training then it sounds you are winning already. I wouldnt get too hung up with weight as such even BMI (body mass index) is only a guideline. the fact that you say you are leaner and healthier now must be a good indicator & this can only have ome about through a good balance of training recovery and diet.



    madnurse (phil)
  • RewRew Posts: 62
    Wella,

    I did exactly the same as you. Came to Tri from Rugby. Played 17 years.Finished last October after one to many concussions.(16 hours in hospital and a headache for three weeks does the trick.)

    Always been 16 - 16.5 stone. Trained really hard without following and specific plan and went down to 14.5 stone last summer. Never felt better or fitter. A winter of relative inactivity and now I'm losing it all again.

    I'd be interested to know how you rate the 12 week triathlete seeing as I've just bought it myself alog with Total Immersion by Terry Laughlin.
  • guv001guv001 Posts: 227
    If you look and feel better then there is no problem with your training. Perhaps you are training harder and not burning as much fat as you were before.
  • WellaWella Posts: 188
    Cheers Phil.



    No sponsorship deal yet, but the post is late this morning. Seriously, the effort it took to get where I am now was huge so I don't want to go back there.



    I'll stick with my training and diet and over time will reap the benefits!



    Happy birthday by the way.



    Wella (Sam)
  • WellaWella Posts: 188
    I've only been playing rugby for 3 years but its great as it gave me the kick up the arse that I needed to get fit. All this triathlon talk has come from there really.



    I bought two books initially, the 12 week triathlete and Triathlon 101. In my view they both excellent reads in their own way. 101 is written in a light hearted manner but does a really good job of covering the basics. The same applies to 12 week triathlete and I found that the 12 week programme suited my training plans due to work, holidays etc. It also incorporated weight training into the programme which is something I really enjoy. As mentioned before I'm convinced I've packed on some muscle in the last 8 weeks despite what the scales say.



    I've also just bought the Triathletes Training Bible. My big aim to to compete in the Olympic distance for the LOndon Triathlon next year so i'll use this plan to get me there as it covers an entire years worth of training.



    Good luck with the plan.
  • madnursemadnurse Posts: 782
    things that really helped me ;



    1) joining a tri club



    2) following a training program (reviewed regualry)



    3) setting acheivable goals



    4) beleiving in myself at daft o'clock when out training in the dark & rain



    5) reminding myself its ok to be be mad



    6) the banter on here
  • I think that you are a top bloke, mad.....yes!



    I too have just recently started training again after a lull of 5 years. The wife said I had to make a descion, her and the kids or triathlon?? Something I had to think hard about for some time but the wife won through.



    My point is that when I first started training and racing I couldn't get another of races and even becam involved in organising events. So go for it and keep pushing.



    Madnurse is absolutely right, involve your family in your training. When I run now my daughter joins me on her bike, this gives some quality time to discuss the day she has had as well as my day but it also allows me to get the miles in.



    If you can try and swim at lunch time, this is something that I do but I am fortunate that my local pool is only a short distance from my office.



    One last thing if you can bike to work.



    I am no expert but am just offering advice as I know how hard it is training with work and family commitments.



    Good luck and keep tri-ing



  • WellaWella Posts: 188
    A tri-club is something i'm looking into. Its just a case of finding one near enough.



    My training plan is pretty well structured (I think) and I assess it daily as quite often something will come up the means I need to shuffle it.



    I get told regularly by workmates, family etc that I'm mad for doing it and as for banter I'll join in where I can!



    I sure I had a feeling of 'daft o'clock' when out on the bike at 6:15 this morning.
  • WellaWella Posts: 188
    Cheers for the advice Happy.



    My family is quite young so there will be no joint bike rides for a few years. Start 'em early mind you.



    As a result I tend to do all my training in the morning before work. Settled into the 6am starts every day so its a formality now.



    I live in Hertfordshire but work in Waterloo in London and although I get the train into London they've closed the tube line that I used to get until October. Perfect excuse for me to cycle. I can't take my big boys bike on the train so I use one of those folding bikes. It means I do about 6 miles a day on it and the cadence has to be pretty high to get any speed as the wheels are so small so I've found its been a useful way of training. My bike time has definately improved since I started using it.
  • BonusBBonusB Posts: 279
    There are quite a number of first timers here now [:D] Welcome! I only started this season as well in order to get fit.



    I reckon we could knock up a half decent rugby team here.... mind most of us aren't playing any more due tothe deisre to avoid futher injuries!



    Likewise I've dropped a lot of weight gone from 16 3/4st to 13.5st which I'm chuffed about, I went down to about 13 at one point but started to go back up as I muscled up, still carrying a bit of flab, but hoping it will gradually burn away so I'm not to worried about it.



    Like Happy I'm lucky I can swim at lunch or go for a run, but I've decided that cycling to and from work is a no no as it means braving the A23 where most folks drive at 70 and theres a slip road half way down that makes things a bit spicy first thing in the morning. To scary for my liking and there's no useful pedestrian path to use (the one that is there I'd be scared to take my mountain bike down let alone a skinny tired road bike), in fact I find that really irritating, that and the fact that it just vanishes and theres no means to get over the slip road. Any way I'm dangerously close to ranting and if I do that I dribble and the folks in the office will definately certify me.
  • loonytoonloonytoon Posts: 673
    Bounus - My current means I need to drive down the A45 to get to work I have looked and I am planning to use smaller roads as an alternative less traffic but I grant some of the smaller lanes can be a bit dicey...



    But its generally okay..



    ...I may live to regret this but I agree conpletely with the nurse on this one....Although I haven't been at the tri club long and have only cycled with them at this point I have picked up aload of tips and no end of encouragement..and the other point he makes are extremely good...though I am never sure I will enjoy bugger oclock in the rain.



    Wella - I saw one of those little bikes at the weekend and was wondering about speed and gearing tried to engage the tri widow in the conversation but talk of wheel sizes and gears went beyond her,. You have confirmed what I though though that you'll have to pedal like billyo to get anywhere

  • WellaWella Posts: 188
    Loony,



    My folding bike is only a cheap thing I found on the internet but it comes with 5 gears which definately make a difference, even on fairly flat inner London streets.



    But it is true you have to pedal like crazy to get a half decent speed up. And if you here the grumbling engine of a bus behind you then you can't pedal fast enough.



    May upgrade to my normal bike when I start to train for an Olympic distance although the roads in hertfordshire are a hell of a lot better for training than inner London.
  • trichamptrichamp Posts: 22
    Mad,



    I'd love to give Helvellyn a go but I'm restricted to sprint and supersprint distances cos I'm still a baby at 16. My sprint distance baptism is 16th July at WNP Swansea but I can't wait!



    Good luck anyway to all you and any of the other nutters @ helvellyn. Let us know how you get on.



    P.S. You guys should come and give the Pembrokeshire triathlon a go. There's Sprint and Middle distances and we're in a beautiful part of the country! 17th June by the way, but that's a bit short notice!!!
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