Try Tri Again

There are a few things I'm terrible at, and saying no to a fun opportunity tops that list.  Particularly when that opportunity is a challenge.  So when Equinox emailed out this week about an indoor tri competition next weekend, I signed up right away.  I run and spin all the time, and I used to swim, so I figured I could handle it.  No problem.

I was pumped.  I'm totally tri-curious, but somewhat hesitant, in part because I never learned how to ride a bike.  I tried, but I never could get it.  Honestly, I have no idea what that's about.  I figure skated as a kid, so it wasn't a coordination or balance problem.  I just had some kind of hang-up, I guess.  Anyway, the indoor tri seemed too good to pass up because I wouldn't have to worry about the biking.

Reality started to set in about 24 hours later as I tried to figure out how to throw swimming into the mix when I'm training a half-marathon that is three weeks away, running the Haiti race next Saturday, and have two more nights of Elements at Crossfit this week. 

Yesterday, I hopped in the pool to see if I could really manage 500 yards next weekend.  I started swimming a few years ago when my knees were really bad.  My doc had tried to tell me not do any exercise that involved bending my knees.  You can imagine how I took that news.  Suddenly, my cardio options were the arm-bike and swimming.  The arm bike is a torture device, so swimming became my thing.  Sort of.

I have a love/hate relationship with swimming.  I love: actually swimming.  I hate: the bathing suits, the shaving, the swim caps, what the chlorine does to my hair, what the chlorine does my nail polish, getting water up my nose, splashy men, old men with baggy swimsuits, the who swims in what lane politics, etc.  The second my knees started to improve, I stopped swimming.  It's cool, but it was such a hassle.

My swim yesterday was great.  It felt really nice to be back in the water.  I kept it short because I'd already run, and I knew I had a big run coming up today.  As I sat in the whirlpool afterwards, I figured that I could get through the 500 yard swim for the tri.  But I'd be "getting through."  It wouldn't be pretty.  Perhaps doing this two weeks before the half-marathon wouldn't be the best idea.

I had a lot of time to think about it on my 11ish mile run this morning.  When I got home, I cancelled.  It kills me to back out of something, but there will be plenty of time for tris in the future.  If I hadn't signed up to begin with, I wouldn't have swam this weekend and remembered how much I like it.  So, it all worked out well.  And who knows, maybe I'll even learn how to ride a bike this spring.  I'll keep you posted.

-Gym Belle-