i dreamt about swimming in a triathlon last night. i felt long and strong, streaming through the cool, open water as i rounded the orange buoys. it was awesome. (reality for me in open water is a very different story, but i'll enjoy the dreams as they come.) the other funny aspect of my triathlon dreams is that i always forget my bike gear and feel totally unprepared (no dream analysis, thank you!). my triathlon experiences (fall 2005, 2006) with tri girl, tri were amazing. it looks like my internal psyche is dropping me another hint.after the half marathon this weekend, i am set up for a few months of serious cross training to get ready for my fall marathon, and i'm convinced that triathlon training is one of the best ways for runners to cross train. as a runner we use certain muscle groups over and over again, while the muscles that aren't directly worked can possibly atrophy to a certain extent. that's where triathlon training comes in for me.
swimming is an amazing core workout with serious booty, hamstring, and arm benefits. (i'm sure there a ton more, but i'm no doctor, so i'll list the ones i know) i find initially, that swimming is very difficult, as the aerobic (and anaerobic) demands are very high. but with a few weeks in the pool, the fitness comes very quickly. and at a vigorous effort, you burn the exact same amount of calories that you would running. the other great benefit of swimming is that there is ZERO impact on your joints. so for those of you who are injured, this is a great alternative. the strokes are very easy to learn (freestyle is the fastest, and widely used by triathletes), and there are also a lot of fun exercises you can do in the pool other than just laps. we'll ask kaylynn to maybe post a few of those.
cycling has really become jonathan's love. i watched him lose over thirty pounds climbing the hills in the bay area. while a more expensive sport to invest in, the rewards are amazing. i always complain to jona about my miss piggy legs (aka cankles) and his answer every time is "get on the bike!" and it's true. the man has calves of steel. he swears he's a successful marathoner because he's a cyclist.
i am going for my first tri this summer. august 2nd in sacramento. i was a swimmer when i was younger, and am so excited to get back in the pool. i've never really cycled, but am excited to become more familiar with that as well.
ReplyDeletedid you get into the nike women's marathon? that is awesome. i so wanted to do that one this year, but will be in NYC, so i am actually going to try to get into the NYC marathon on Nov 2. hopefully i will be able to find some running partners back there.
i'm going to be doing that tri along with morgan and our dad on august 2nd. this is my first as well... any of you girls here in the bay area are welcome to join us! :)
ReplyDeletegood luck on your half marathon tomorrow julia! you can totally do it!
Oooh. Another tri. I LOVE triathlons. I've only done 2, but I think I might like them better than running races. It's just a lot easier to train for a running race when you're busy. Or at least I think it is. That makes me want to do another tri. Hmmmmmmmm.
ReplyDeleteI love that you are doing this little blog. I am actually doing my first triathlon a week from today and feel totally ill-prepared. With the crazy Utah weather I have been on my bike three times. Also I love how you put your running schedules and ideas on here, I think I will have to steal a few.
ReplyDeletemorgan: you are at a total advantage being a swimmer. in my opinion, that is the HARDEST part of the tri. and yes, i got in to the nike women's marathon, but no one else did - so we'll see if i actually run that particular race, if not another that everyone can participate in.
ReplyDeletewhitney (and morgan): what triathlon are you doing? is it the tri for fun? jonathan did that last year and had a blast.
molly: DO IT DO IT DO IT!
katie: yay for old friends on the blog! good luck this next weekend. i would LOVE to hear how it goes for you. you are going to be great. you're a swimmer as well, right?