I just found out today that the November Indoor Sprint Triathlon I wanted to do starts sign up on Monday, July 27. I also found out they are limited with space and only accept the first 48 people who sign up.

Assuming that I could be one of those people, do I really want to be? Should I really be? I imagine all these experienced triathletes entering and I don't want to be the one to cover the least distance in the given times. I've never done a triathlon. I know how to swim but I'm not a big swimmer so that first segment will be the most difficult for me. Should I even consider taking up a spot? I feel the more trained/experienced/athletic people should get in before me.

The information says nothing about qualifying to get in... only that there are only 48 spots so register early.

Maybe I should just do my own triathlon and time myself and see what I complete in that time without all the stress and worry. Or maybe I should jump right in and feel confident that I deserve to participate like anyone else and not care if I come in last because, after all, someone has to.

What do you think?

E

 Hi E,

I think you should enter.  You absolutely deserve to participate.  Don't let your mind play tricks on you and stop you from achieving your next goal.  You can do this and if you register as soon as possible you will do this!

Stay focused and register on the 27th. 

Keep me posted.

Good Luck,

Paul

Okay... you've convinced me! I just went online and tried to sign up but it said there is no online sign up for this event. So, I called and they can't take a phone registration either. I'll have to go in tomorrow and sign up in person. That is bizarre but what can I do. I asked how many spots are still open and there are still 48! Apparently, this is not a popular event that top athletes rush to. LOL.

For the Hustle Up the Hancock that I've done 5 years in a row you need to sign up in the first hour or you have lost your chance to do the full climb. For the March Madness Half Marathon in March I didn't get a spot because I tried to sign up one day after sign up started. They filled up in something like 7 hours. That's the kind of competition I was picturing in my head. I don't see all 48 spots disappearing by tomorrow afternoon if none were taken in the first 12 hours.

Ahhhhhh... that's my scream of excitement and fear! LOL.

E

 Hi E,

Don't let any of that factor into your decision making!  Sign up as soon as possible so you can use that goal as a motivational tool.  Attack!  Use this event everyday as something that gets you fired up to train!  Forget about whether anyone else has signed up, worry about yourself! 

Train Hard!

Good Luck,

Paul

Thank you for getting me to focus on the right stuff! I was getting distracted in my thinking there!

I signed up today.. the first one to do so! LOL.

E

 Hi E,

Good for you!  You're doing great!  Stay focused and keep us posted.

Good Luck,

Paul

Wow, it's been over a month since I posted on this thread! I've been slacking writing here but not slacking in my training. I work part time but I am currently doing full-time temporarily (finished 2 of the 7 weeks). I'm getting up 2x a week at the early hour of 5 or 5:30 to get a run or workout in so that I can be in the shower by 6:30, completely ready by 7, get my kids breakfast and make their lunches and out the door by 7:45. I also do a nice long run each weekend.

This morning I completed another half marathon. I did 13.1 miles in 2:19:39 which is a 16 min improvement over the same distance I did in May! That is a 10:40/mile pace :-). My PR from 5/05 is 2:11 so I am aiming to get back to that and I know I will. I love this distance and am actually going to see if there's another half marathon in the next couple months around here... before it gets too cold and you can't find a run to save your life!

I have a 5K coming up in 3 weeks and another on Nov 1 plus the indoor sprint tri in mid-November.

Here's to an active and healthy life and RUNNING!

E

 Hi Excellentjeni,

Wow is right!  Often times when people aren't posting, they're slacking.  Nothing could be further from the truth with you.  You are someone to admire!  You're not making excuses, you're getting it done!  You're doing early mornings, you're doing half marathon's, you're doing 5K's and you're improving your times. Amazing!

You've embraced a healthy life and that is what it takes to be successful on this journey.  You should feel so proud of yourself!

Keep up the great work and keep me imformed, you motivate me!

Good luck,

Paul

Thanks for the kind words :-).

E

 Hi E,

You're very welcome.  I hope I can also help to motivate you, as well as educate you on the best plan of action for physical activity toward reaching your weight loss goals.  I love that you've taken this to a whole new level: you are doing this as a challenge and are becoming a great athlete in the process.  Enjoy this journey, keep focused and always strive for more.

Good Luck,

Paul

Thank you! You do motivate me! And somehow my weight loss goals are becoming reality. I am down 27 pounds (yes, it took over a year but I did it) and I have 8 pounds to go until my goal weight. I am being flexible with my goal weight though. I need to see how I feel and look at the new weight. I need to see if I keep eating and exercising like I am if I continue to lose weight. So I take it one pound at a time.

Since I wrote about the last half marathon I came to realize that it was my 2nd fastest half marathon ever (out of 5 total). I didn't realize my others prior to 2005 had been slower until I went to record it in my book of races/events. Wow! How'd I manage that one? LOL.

Right now, my challenge is to keep running without another half marathon in sight. I looked around and all I can find for the fall are halfs that are 2.5-4 hours away and would require an overnight stay. Not something I'm really planning on doing. I have a couple 5Ks lined up as well as that indoor sprint tri. So my plan is to continue two mid-week runs 2-6 miles each and a long run over the weekend (6-10 miles). I'm going to practice running faster for periods of time so I can do well in the 5Ks. I also need to start biking more regularly, maybe once a week doing 12-13 miles as well as starting to swim which I am not doing at all now. I need to be in the pool maybe once every 2 weeks to start for just 15 minutes or so and closer to the sprint tri up that to once a week.

I know weight training and yoga would do me worlds of good but there's only time for so much!

Any information you have on maximizing my speed, endurance, strength, flexibility, resistance to injury and weight loss are much appreciated.

Have a fantastic week!

E

Hi excellentjeni, 

Wow, great to hear from you and that you're doing so well with your weight loss!  You've done it the safe and correct way...slow and steady! I do encourage you to keep your "goal weight" flexible, as you may need/want to adjust it as you get closer to it.  The main goal should be healthy, energetic and a realistic # that you can maintain long-term.

Congratulations, too, on your times!  You've definitely become more aerobically fit and it is showing up on the watch.  Adding in intervals of higher paced running will benefit you, as well as running shorter distances at race pace.  Be sure that you are performing plenty of core (abs, hamstrings, lower back and gluts)strengthening exercises, even if you don't have a lot of time for "full-body" resistance training.  These muscles are crucial to preventing lower body injury, especially when your putting in all those miles.  Many knee, hip, ankle, and foot injuries are a result of a lack of conditioning of these areas.  Also keeping those hams, gluts and hips flexible and "in-line" with shoulders, etc.  

Best of luck to you and keep us updated with your progress!

Your friend in fitness, 

Kelli

Thanks for all the tips, Kelli!

E

I ran a 5K today in approximately 28:41. It wasn't chip-timed and I *think* this is the time I saw on my watch but I forgot to stop it! LOL. If correct, that is a 9:15 minute mile. Woo hoo! My 11-year-old son ran it too. It was his first one and he did not train for it (despite me offering to help, etc.). After I finished I got a bottle of water and ran back the other way looking for him and then ran to the finish with him. His time was 45 minutes something seconds. My 8-yr-old son did the 400 yd dash which was untimed.

There's a cool relay in a couple weeks I might do with my 11-yr-old. It's one mile and you pair up; one 5th or 6th grader (my son) with one family member 13+ years old (me). I run the first half and he runs the second half. I think if I'm just running 1/2 a mile I could do it in less than 4 min. Who knows? Anyway, should be fun. I hope he'll do it with me!

E

Hi E,

Congratualtions! That's a great time, even for regular 5K runners.  You should be very proud of yourself and use this as a motivation to do more.  It must be even more satisfying to run races with your own kids.  I say go for it with your 11 year old . . .I think it's more than likely you can run the 1/2 mile in the 3's.  Think about it: this is all you have to do in terms of distance and you can really give it your all.  I wouldn't be surprised if you do it a lot faster.  If you're focusing on increasing your speed, try a couple hill workouts and intervals over the next few weeks.  If you have access to a track, some speed work like a series of 200s (half a lap) at 90-95% speed will all help. 

The important thing is to focus on just how far you've come and how much you have ahead of you!  Keep it up, and let me know how it goes.

Good Luck,

Paul