Triathlon Training: The Beginning
I started this section of my blog as a timeline for my training for my first Triathlon. Competing in a Triathlon has been a goal of mine for the last seven years. However, due to many unforeseen circumstances and ever-growing work requirements, I haven’t been able to compete in a triathlon. Now I am at a point in my professional career that I now have a little bit of free time to train again. So, I am currently training for the Sandling Beach Triathlon held in North Carolina at the beginning of October!
To start this blog series, I have recapped how I became interested in the sport of Triathlons and how I got to this point. If you aren’t interested in my story below, no hard feelings, and take a look at my latest post!
The Beginning
It started when I was learning how to fly helicopters in Enterprise, Alabama. The local Army base was hosting a Sprint Triathlon in the Fall of 2014. So my friend and I started to train for the event a couple of months out. I bought my bike, which was a Trek 1.1 road bike, in 2013, and we hit the pool about twice a week.
However, due to work requirements, we were unable to compete. The goal of completing a Triathlon was still in my sights. Unfortunately, my new work requirements began to pile up, and my responsibilities as an adult did not leave much time for triathlon training. In 2015, I was given another opportunity to compete in a Reserve Sprint Triathlon in South Korea. The timing and structure of the course were perfect. A reserve triathlon is a run, bike, and swim. Whereas a traditional triathlon is a swim, bike, and run. The night of the Triathlon, I gathered all my gear near the door and excitedly tried to sleep!
Around 1 AM, I was abruptly awoken by the phone going off. My supervisor informed me that one of my subordinates was picked up by the police and hospitalized for alcohol poisoning. As the manager, my weekend was ruined by ensuring he was in good health and completing a mountain of paperwork. Once again, another triathlon attempt was foiled by unforeseen circumstances.
At this point, my hopes for completing a triathlon was dwindling, and my motivation was waning. However, during my work performance reviews, I always put completing a triathlon as one of my personal goals. Fast forward to today, I am currently in a position where my free time has dramatically increased, and my motivation to compete in the upcoming Sandling Beach Triathlon is at an all-time high!
As of writing this article, I have been training steadily for about three weeks. My fitness is not where it was seven years ago, but I think that will be the best part of the challenge to get back to the point I was fitness-wise.
This series will chronicle my journey through training, dieting, and finally completing a triathlon!
Let’s see how it goes!
