After finishing the Olympic distance race last week a co-worker asked me what my ultimate distance goal was for triathlon. I told him I would like to do a half Ironman (aka 70.3) but that I don't know if I have the dedication it takes to do a full Ironman.
In case you aren't obsessed with triathlons like me, the typical race distances look like this:
- Sprint: .5 Mile Swim, 12 Mile Bike, 3.1 Mile Run
- Olympic: .9 Mile Swim, 24 Mile Bike, 6.2 Mile Run
- Half Ironman (aka 70.3): 1.2 Mile Swim, 56 Mile Bike, 13.1 Mile Run
- Full Ironman: 2.4 Mile Swim, 112 Mile Bike, 26.2 Mile Run
Well, less than two weeks after my first Olympic distance race and I've got my eyes set on a Half Ironman. I've heard you get sucked into triathlon. Always wanting to go faster, harder, longer. Well, it's true.
When I proposed a 70.3 to my husband he responded with, and I quote, "You are so freaking insane its not funny." He's probably right. I know I need to ease into it and get a solid base before moving up another distance (he said that too) but I still want it. I still want to push harder and longer. We decided we would revisit this after the half marathon in October, but we both agreed we should spend a full year at the Olympic distance before we move to the next distance.
I should also note that this is not the first time my husband has talked me off the ledge. In 2006 I decided I wanted to run a marathon for Team in Training. We even went to the informational meeting and after the meeting I was hooked in and even more convinced that I could do this! (those motivational speakers and tear inducing videos of cancer survivors running across the finish line really work!) I decided to overlook the fact that I had never run a race (not even a 5K), I had to raise an incredible amount of money, and there was no way in hell I could devote enough time to training between being a full-time student and working part-time. After a long fight discussion he was able to get through to me and convince me what an insane idea this was and, as much as I hate to admit it, he was right. In the end we signed up for a charity 5K instead :)
But I'm older and wiser now so maybe I can judge my abilities better? I guess we will just have to wait in and see ;)
3 comments:
Being "freaking insane" is part of the fun isn't it??? Reminds of the Jimmy Buffett song Changes in Latitude, "If we weren't all crazy, we'd just go insane."
Good luck with your decision making!
Good luck on your decision. The sprint and olympic distances are just the gateway drugs. I'm about to try some harder "stuff" in a couple of weeks :)
Btw, I stole your buckeyeoutdoors.com blogger gadget idea. That gadget is awesome!
One step at a time. Focus on the half right now. By the time you're through, you'll already have picked out which full you want to do. I never wanted to do an Ironman; now I love them better than any other distance!
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