First Triathalon Scheduled

So I'm taking the next big step. Signing up for a Triathalon.

Knowing that a date is now on the calendar adds a bit more urgency to the training schedule.

I downloaded a few training plans off of Active.com, started plugging them into my calendar to see how I am going to juggle a long day of work and commuting, along with family and other obligations. Going to be difficult, but I'll find a way.

Biking isn't going to difficult, I can do the Sprint distance bike without any issues. I'm getting better at the run, but swimming...... That is a whole different story. Then of course there is the fact that I have to tie all three of them together back to back to back.

Last night I started my swimming training. I was pretty much sick after pushing through the training laps and intervals. I know that my form is terrible, breathing is incorrect, etc. So much to focus on while just trying to make it 50 meters at a time.

Today back to the bike for some climbs up and over Mt. Soledad. Start off with 2 miles of climbing, then nice ride back down.... wash, rinse, repeat. Each loop is about 5 miles, shooting for 3 loops today. Probably all I will have time for.

So as a follow up.

I tried and tried to turn my old mountain bike into a road bike, but it really doesn't work.

I should probably have saved the money and effort and just went out and bought the road bike right away, but I had to try the upgrade rout first.

With that said, I love my new Specialized Allez Comp road bike. Got a brand new 2011 bike. Great bike, so nice to ride. It probably have a little less than 200 miles on it so far, but I'm so happy with the purchase. Night and day difference between the mtn bike and the roadie.

Now it is time to start looking at Triathlon training plans.
30 Miles on the bike is easy now, starting to push it further as I try to work up to the Century ride.

Running is another story. I never ran before. Thank goodness I got some real running shoes, they make such a huge difference. Now to work on my form and my pace. My wife and I can jog/walk about 4 miles now with most of that running. A long way to go to IronMan spec, but my goal is Sprint Tri, not Ironman.

Need to find some training plans. I've looked at a few websites, tons of info out there. Now just need to get down to one for proper tracking and goal setting.

Getting off the couch, pushing back from the video games

So the time has come to push back from the video games, get my lazy butt off the couch and start to get back in shape and enjoy life again.

It is amazing how a few weeks off from the gym turned into 4 years off...or is it 4+ years. Either way, it is time to get back to it.

So, true to many things that I do in life, when I go for it...I'm going to go for it. The goal is to complete my first Sprint distance Triathlon. Oh yeah, going from video gamer to Triathlete!
I have some great support in my best buddy who is training for and competing in Iron Man triathlons, so he will be a great help and inspiration to me.

When at look back at how this started, it was a simple desire to stop paying bus fare every day.
I commute daily to work via car, train, and bus. The train schedule and the bus schedule don't quite match up at the work end of my commute. So every day resulted in about 20-30 minutes of wasted time waiting for my bus to take me the short 2.5 miles to the office. I also got a bit tired of paying the bus fare ever day. Keeping a stash of quarters and dollars in my travel bag to make sure I could ride the bus got old quickly. So one day I got frustrated and declared that I was going to ride my bike!

Well, about 2 months later I actually dusted off the old mountain bike, got it tuned up and off I went. First adventure was learning how to commute on the train with my bike. I made it, though I packed a bit too much stuff, and wasn't very efficient, but that has improved with time. I still remember that first day taking off from the train station in a flash....this was going to be so easy! Then came the first hill. Huffing and puffing I made it up and over, and then completed the slightly uphill journey to the office. Whew.. I made it. A sweaty mess, but I made it.

So that is how it started. A simple move to save on bus fare, turned me around and got me started back on the road to fitness.

I kind of doubt that anyone will actually pick this up and read it, this is going to be the way I keep track of my goals and adventures.