Olympic Distance Triathlon

Yesterday I signed up to do my first Olympic distance triathlon! Wahoo!!! I'm SO excited, yet I'm scared out of my pants. This is also my first open water triathlon too.

This triathlon will be at Jordanelle Reservoir here in Utah on August 20th. So, at least I have time to prepare for it. I'm now a member of Northern Utah Triathletes (NUTs) and they have open water clinics when the weather gets warmer, so that'll help me out too.



For those that aren't too familiar, The only triathlons I've ever done are sprint distance triathlons and most of them have been in the order of run/bike/swim.

With the sprint distance triathlons, you have to:
Run: 3.2 miles
Bike: 10-12 miles
Swim: 0.5 miles

An Olympic distance triathlon, you have to:
Swim: 0.93 miles
Bike: 24.86 miles
Run: 6.2 miles.

I know I can do it because I know I've run a 10k before, I swim 0.93 miles almost every day and I've rode my bike 50 miles before, it just makes me super nervous. But, I'm super excited too. Yay!

Beautiful Day

Today was a GORGEOUS day here in Utah. It was 44 degrees out, so I pulled out my bike and took it for a spin. I went 20 miles in 1 1/2 hours. It wasn't too hot outside, it wasn't too cold, it was just perfect. I enjoyed every second of my ride.

Now, you might think that 20 miles in 1 1/2 hours isn't too bad, but I'm kind of disappointed. When I ride a spinning bike at the gym, I can go 20 miles in 60 minutes. I feel like I should be able to do that on my road bike too.

I honestly just don't understand. Oh well, I will continue to take my bike out when the weather is good and I will eventually improve.

Good Running Song

Here is another awesome song to run to. It's got a really good beat and it is perfect for running.

Flip Turn

Let me start off by saying I'm the most uncoordinated person I know.

With that being said, I sure wish I could do a flip turn when swimming. I know that would cut down on my swim time.

This morning when I went swimming it took me about 6:10 to swim 300 yards, which isn't too bad, but I'm pretty sure I could get rid of those 10 seconds by doing flip turns. Too bad I'm uncoordinated, huh?

Everybody says it's easy and I'll you have to do is basically do a somersault in the water. Well guess what? I've NEVER been able to do a somersault in the water. Even when I was a kid and we were messing around in the pool, I wasn't able to do a somersault in the pool. I've never been able to do a hand stand in the pool either.

Maybe one day I'll be able to do a flip turn. :)

New Shoes

Saturday I went out and bought new running shoes. I went to Salt Lake Running Co. This is an awesome store to go to. If it's your first time at the store, they'll put you on a treadmill and record you running for 30-45 seconds and analyze how you run and then put you in the correct shoe for your running style.

Up until now, I've only worn Saucony brand running shoes. I've LOVED that brand. But this time, when I went in to the store, BJ (yes, my personal trainer. He also works at Salt Lake Running Co) handed me a pair of Saucony's and then he handed me these Asics.

There are 2 reasons I went with the Asics. (1) the Saucony's were too big. They were an 8 1/2 and I wear a size 8. (2) The Asics are just WAY better. They just have better arch support and everything.

I even bought a pair of running socks. I didn't think you really needed running socks, but after tonight, I'm convinced that running socks are a necessity. I will be going back to Salt Lake Running Co soon and buying more than one pair. Lol. The running socks I bought have extra cushion on the bottom of the sock and then they have a lighter fabric on top that helps breathe so your feet don't get wet from the sweat, therefore preventing blisters.

Tonight I ran in my new socks and shoes for the first time and I am IN LOVE!!! They were SO insanely comfortable! I ran 7 miles and it was like running those 7 miles on big white fluffy clouds!

Little Accomplishments

I know this is going to sound kind of stupid, but it's the little accomplishments that count, right?

The weather was GORGEOUS today here in Utah, so I decided to take my bike out instead of going to the gym.

When I pulled my bike out of the shed, the chain came off, and I was able to put the chain back on all by myself! I've always had to have help figuring that out before.

I was also able to put air in both my tires all by myself too. Because I have the presta valves, they're different and they can sometimes make it kind of difficult to put air in your tires, so I felt really good that I was able to do this!

Yay!

Excuses Don't Cut It

In my book, excuses don't cut it. If you're going to complain about being overweight and you keep saying that you need to get out and exercise, don't make excuses!

My mom and dad both complain about being overweight, but when I offer to pay for them to go to the gym with me or go out on a bike ride with me, they make excuses. If you're going to make excuses, then don't complain.

I don't recall complaining when I was overweight about it. If someone offered to workout with me or something, I just laughed at them.

Gah! It just bugs me SO bad!