TRIATHLON

10 days ago I swam/biked/ran my first triathlon.

It was hard. It was brilliant. And it won't be the only one I do. I am hooked.

Recovering from a full marathon was more difficult. But while it is difficult to compare training for the two events, it is similar in this respect: that it requires a priority above all else in your day-to-day life. The difference in my training experiences was that the marathon commanded respect (it was my first major event and I was appropriately on edge) while the triathlon, though taken seriously, was fit into my life and not the other way round. I did very well. I finished in 1:33:00. But I would consider, in hindsight, my training schedule to have been on the light side; a minimum standard.

Swim training was zen-like. The swim at the event was a war. The last 250 meters and I was in full battle mode, swimming hard and working at positioning myself for the finish. The finish was much more exhausting than I had ever imagined. I couldn't run to my bike; I stumbled.

The bike was good. I purposely held back on the flats, saving myself for the run. I did very well on the hill. On the second lap I passed a lot of people on the top bit of the hill motivated by how well I was feeling and the support I was given by Derek and Dad. Good move Dezza. Your support was amazing and its effect immeasurable.

The run hurt. Coming out of T2 my HR was sky-high and I had to walk a fair bit for the first 1.5k. However, I finished very strong. I ran the last 500 metres and felt good.