Registered for my first tri!

[kellydelq]

And I never really swam and don't own a bike but it's a goal I have for 2015 so I am making it happen somehow!

 I have until August so give me your best tips on where to begin. I have no time goal, just don't drown and cross the finish line. The swim is what I am most worried about though. It is in the ocean but I am at that beach on the weekends in the summer so I will have time to practice beforehand.

Please tell me I can do this!

[memenee]

What is your current fitness level? What is your regular workout routine? You are a runner running regularly?

Is it a mini-Tri? What are the distances?

Put your mind to it and you can do it!

[sadlebred]

1. Get a bike. Don't rent one for the tri. It doesn't have to be expensive or fancy, but you need something to train on. FIT is the most important thing. Your local bike shop (LBS) will have bikes in all price ranges. Do not buy a bike at Target/Kroger/Walmart. Budget for a helmet. They are required in tris, and there is no excuse for not ever wearing one. If you have specific questions about bikes, Susie, myself, and the other cyclists can answer them for you. See the link in my sig. for bike stuff.
2. www.beginnertriathlete.com.
3. If you haven't been fitted for running shoes, go to your LRS (Local running store...not Dicks, Sports Authority, etc.) to be fitted. You will avoid a lot of injuries that way.

[shorewife]

Open water swimming is VERY different and can be overwhelming but if you spend time beforehand practicing when you are at the beach you should be comfortable doing it on race day. Good luck!

[juliabug]

You can do it! What distance is your race? I second the beginner tri website referenced above. It's what I used to train for my first and I'm using it again to train for my first Olympic distance. Good luck! Share your training updates.

[emilyj]

You can do it! You have plenty of time to train properly. Agree with getting your own bike, and getting fitted for running shoes.

I joined a Masters team two years ago. It's been wonderful for my swimming. However, I'd also recommend a couple of lessons first, because if you haven't really swam, getting good instruction on the basics will be important.

[joenali]

Get swimming lessons. I'm going to rant here:

I can't stand when people haven't ever swam before they do a triathlon. Open water swimming can be dangerous if you don't know what you are doing. Please , please for the safety of yourself and others take swimming lessons starting today.

Rant over.

Make sure you also have fun!

[trigal]

Please learn how to swim. People who plan to "get through" the swim are a danger to everyone in the water.

My blog has some newbie advice.

[ktzmoh]

I'm hoping to try out a triathlon this year too. Swimming is a lot of fun, but there was way more to learn than I could have imagined. I'm in my 4th month of lessons in the pool now and have my first open water swim coming up.

One other aspect that I think will be challenging for me to learn is riding a bike with lots if other people around. I can ride a bike, but I've never ridden in a group, so bike handling skills are on my agenda for sure.

Good luck and keep us posted on how the training goes!!

[kellydelq]

Thanks for all the responses! It's definitely a beginner course from what I've heard from friends and family that have participated in the past. It's .25 swim 10 mile bike and a 5k

Currently running is crap because of the weather but I plan to be back to regular 10-15 miles per week. And I will be training for a ten miler in May and hope to keep up the longer distances afterwards.

My cousin, who does tri's regularly is going to help me train for the swim. I can tread water and am not completely unfamiliar but never really swam in open water with proper strokes if that makes sense. The course is also heavily loaded with lifeguards so I'm only half kidding when I say I fear of drowning. I'm really more concerned with sharks

As for a bike, I'm hoping to use the new one my son just got for Xmas. We got him a Fuji traverse hybrid from our local bike store. Being that we are about the same height, do you think this will work? I don't plan to buy my own and don't want to rent or buy a cheap one.

[juliabug]

I rode my cheap hybrid bike for my first tri. I was certainly not the fastest biker, but it got the job done. Like the others said, it's more important to train on the bike that you will use than to have the best bike.

An ocean swim sounds really hard, but you can definitely do it if you are properly prepared.

Sounds like you will have no problem with the run portion, but be sure to do a few "brick" work outs where you go directly from biking to running.

I'm excited for you! Triathlons are so much fun!

[CallingAllAngels]

With a 10 mile bike ride, I think you'll be okay in your DS's bike. If you want to do tris regularly, you can invest in a bike later. Just make sure you get some good rides in on that bike before the race.

The swim sounds like it will be the hardest part, so open water practice is important. Just be prepared for a lot of contact during the swim. I had practiced open water swimming before my first open water tri, but I was unprepared for the fact that the swim was more like a wrestling match.

Good luck! I think triathlons are so fun.

[sadlebred]

You should be fine on your DS's bike. Have your cousin help you adjust the saddle height. You want about a 15 degree bend in your knee. Any lower or higher, and you could get knee pain.*

*10 degree bend if you ride clipless pedals

[schenkertobe]

Exciting! You can do it.

[farfalla2011]

This is so exciting!! I haven't registered yet, but I'm planning on my first tri in June!

You can totally do this and have plenty of time to train up it sounds like. I've been looking on the beginner tri site and they have a bunch of great training plans. I think I'm going to go with their 16 week sprint tri plan. I'm going to officially start the plan on March 1st since it lines up perfectly with when my tri is. However, I've been working on C25K (basically done, just need to start doing the longer runs more regularly) since I wasn't a runner and have swam a couple times. I plan to swim a couple times a week and run a couple times a week until I officially start the plan in March. But be prepared, swimming will kick your butt if you don't already do it. It was a big shocker for me.

Good luck!

[memenee]

sadlebred Susie

Can you link a rec or two for a good beginner bike?

[sadlebred]

Bike-I'd go to your local bike shops and see what they have if you don't want to use your DS's bike. Are you thinking of buying one? We can go from there...

[memenee]

Jan 26, 2015 15:47:37 GMT -5 sadlebred said:

Bike-I'd go to your local bike shops and see what they have if you don't want to use your DS's bike. Are you thinking of buying one? We can go from there...

I'm not the OP - just hijacking the thread for a second.

OP has inspired me. I've always wanted to do a Tri. I can swim year round at the Y and there is also a womens Tri group there. Not sure what has stopped me all these years. But I will need a bike.

Thank you in advance for anything you can rec for a beginner.