Being a Beginner - My First Triathlon
I signed up to the Blenheim Triathlon in May of this year while I was craving something exciting, new, and challenging having spent a large portion of the last year stuck in the same place (as we all were) completing my fourth and final year at uni in my childhood bedroom.
The group “The Have a Gos”, founded by Emily Clarkson, on Instagram posted that they had several places up for grabs for the triathlon that normally you have to enter a ballot to get a place and I thought why not. The ethos of “The Have a Gos”, who are also known as the wonderful acronym HAGs, is to leave judgement at the door and just give it a shot. They enter seemingly “intimidating” sporting events and encourage people to go for it.
This was my philosophy for the training and the event itself. No strict training plan, no time goal, I just wanted to finish. What resulted from this was such a refreshing experience. I genuinely enjoyed the training, pushing myself out of my comfort zone but not beating myself up if I missed a run or ride.
Overcoming Fear
Triathlon has three disciplines; the swim, the bike, and the run and because of this it meant that training provided an opportunity for an immense breadth of cross-training. If I didn’t feel like running, I’d go for a swim. Or when I was getting the legs used to running off the bike after a ride I’d jog down to the end of the road and back. I was moving my body in all sorts of different ways, and it felt great. Personally, if I have one quite specific goal I can get bogged down with the narrow focus and end us resenting the journey. Triathlon is a test of all round fitness rather than necessarily absolutely nailing one discipline.
It reminds me of this quotation by Kirsty Gallagher, the author of Lunar Living, on the Autumn Equinox:
“As the saying goes, you can’t keep doing the same things and expecting different results. What is it finally time to shed, release and let go of? What no longer supports your growth or the true north direction you want to go? What do you not want to take into this next season with you?”
Taking steps outside you comfort zone literally expands you. It tells you brain you can do hard things and you start to become more confident to take that first step. For me, my weakest discipline going into the training was the bike. I’d taken many a peloton class on a stationary bike, but I’d never been on a road bike before on the rolling hills of West Wight…
Stationary peloton to road bike
The sheer terror of that first ride is comical to look but at now but it was perfectly valid. I was lucky enough that a couple of years ago my mother had done several triathlons including a half ironman so you she still had a very smart, lightning-fast road bike. At the best of times, even on a super stable mountain bike my handling track record is not the greatest. To put it in perspective my real-life experience of riding a bike in adulthood has predominantly consisted of riding back from beach bars in Majorca after too many mojitos and coming off second best to lavender bushes lining the driveway.
The first ride I went on I clung onto the handlebars like my life depended on it but the next time my shoulders relaxed a little, the next time I didn’t slam the brakes so hard down hills, and the next time I went out by myself. In adulthood these experiences of truly being out of your comfort zone are a lot easier to avoid. Accepting that vulnerable, bambi-like stage of being a total beginner is very humbling but at the same time immensely strengthening.
The Blenheim Triathlon event day itself was incredible. The triathlon community is truly supportive to newbies, there were lots of chats in transition and even words of encouragement between the competitors out on the course. I did the sprint distance so 750m swim, 20km bike, and a 5km run (but by my watch it was more like 5.8…).
My advice to beginner triathletes:
Practice your worst discipline.
Face those fears whether that be swimming, riding, or running before the event.
Do “brick” sessions.
Immediately after you come back from a ride go for a little run even just to the end of the road to get your legs used to running after biking.
Have a nutrition plan that you have tested pre-race.
I had a bottle of squash and half a banana in transition before getting on the bike. You’ll need some sugar.
Take the pressure off and enjoy it.
Broadly speaking triathlons aren’t about time anyway. The distances vary, the conditions vary, the courses vary so enjoy the experience.
Factor yoga into your training especially upper body mobility.
The rounded position you are in for the bike causes a lot of tension in the shoulders and upper back and you need that mobility to be able to swim efficiently.
There is no doubt that my yoga practice helped me during the training. Even just to use calming breaths to stop any panic in the open water swim and the post session stretching really enabled me to train without soreness. An upper body mobility routine that would be amazing for you on the Online Studio is this one.
This Autumn join the team of experts on The Online Studio as we transition into this new season together. As the activities of Summer fade, staying motivated becomes key so this is a great time of year to try something completely different. This October let go of what’s been holding you back and step into The Online Studio to try something new. Whether you’re a hardcore yogi or fitness fanatic, why not switch things up with the season.
Not a member? The membership costs less approximately £1 per live class (and that doesn’t include the over 500 on demand classes that you can access). PLUS we are running a free 14-day trial at the moment. Intrigued?
