I tri’d…and WON

I did! The whole, darn, THING.

The first of three heats began at 6 am. I started in the second heat at 6:35 am with a 10-minute swim, in which I was able to finish 26 laps (650 yards).

Then, after a 10-minute break, we began our 30-minute cycle, in which I was able to ride 18.8 miles. I set the bike at about a 9 or a 10 for resistance and just pedaled as hard as I could at a pace I thought I could withstand. I couldn’t believe how tired I was after simply swimming for 10 minutes! The fatigue soon wore off and I was able to go at a brisk, even pace the entire time.

Lastly, after another 10-minute break, we headed upstairs to the treadmills and hopped on for 20 minutes, in which I ran 2.8 miles. This was the trickiest part for me, as I wasn’t sure how fast to set the treadmill at the beginning. I asked Andrew for advice and he suggested starting all-out, and backing off later if I got tired. I set the treadmill to 7-minute miles and only got faster from there! Lesson learned: you really can go faster and harder than you think.

When all three heats were finished–approximately 15 people–they announced the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places for men and women…and not only was I the first-place woman, I happened to accomplish the most distance in all three events!

This was the second annual ‘Tri at the Y’ held at the Southtowns YMCA. I didn’t compete last year–must have been out of town–but I definitely think this is something I would do in the future. Speaking of the future…perhaps I should take up triathlons!

I’m gonna tri

Yes I am! I finally signed up for my FIRST triathlon…which isn’t really a ‘real’ triathlon, but it’s a start. The second annual ‘Tri at the Y’ is happening Nov 13, and I’ll be there!

I decided–especially since I’ve never done a triathlon before–I should probably do a little practicing before the big event. Not so much the individual events (a 10-minute swim, 30-minute bike, 20-minute run), but the transitions between each one. (Not that we’ll be racing down the hallways; we have 10-minute blocks of time between each event per heat.)

Anyway, today I decided I’d give it a go. Here I am, before my swim:

In 10 minutes, I did 625 yds in the pool, and would have had plenty of time to change into dry clothes, if I’d brought them with me. (I wanted to practice in my wet swimsuit in case I wouldn’t have time to change.)

After the bike:

As an instructor, I can use the cycle room solo (which is right next to the pool), so I jumped in there and hopped on the bike. I started listening to my current audiobook, In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote, but quickly got bored (not because of the book, because I was biking at a steady pace without good music). So I called a friend, and before I knew it, my thirty minutes had passed. Sixteen miles with the bike at approximately gear 11.

After the run:

I was a sweaty, sopping mess by the end! Approx 2.6 miles in 20 minutes, with my average pace 7:40. I know I can go faster, but how much faster? I think the run will be the most difficult for me, since it’s hard to know how fast to start out on a treadmill.

I had a great time, although it seemed a bit disjointed as I kept running into people I knew and chatting. I liked that no one event was very long, so it keeps it from getting tedious. For the LONGEST time I’ve been saying I should do a triathlon, so perhaps this will be just the first of many such races.

epic workout in a pinch

What do you do when you get to the gym late and miss your beloved BODYPUMP class??

You improvise!

The other day, I was babysitting for a friend and had every intention to leave in time to get to BODYPUMP to make sure I got a full-body strength session before I taught my cycle class. But, life doesn’t always work out the way you want it to, and moms sometimes don’t get home on time. And then the girls and I had to show her all the puzzles we put together in her absence.

By the time I walked into the gym, I could already hear the warm-up song playing and didn’t feel like walking in late. So, I headed upstairs to hit the weights. *While I do enjoy lifting weights, I find I gravitate to group classes instead of solo lifting sessions…if only I had a partner who wanted to lift with the same schedule as me!

I started on the leg machines, but knew I wanted to do a full-body workout. I don’t know if I intended to do so many ‘combo’ moves, but I find upping the intensity by working upper- and lower-body parts at the same time makes my workouts more interesting (and challenging!) to me. I was tempted to listen to my current audiobook (Where’d You Go, Bernadette, by Maria Semple), but figured I wouldn’t be able to count my reps very well.

Here’s what I did:

Seated Calf (3 x 10-12 reps @130 lbs, both regular and inner calf)

Glute Extension (3 x 10 reps @ 90 lb)

Leg Extension (4 x 8-10 reps @ 75-85 lbs)

Leg Curl (3 x 8-10 reps @ 85-90 lbs)

Shoulder Press/Plie Squat (3 x 10 w/ 15 lb dumbbells)

Skull Crushers (3 x 10 @ 30 lb barbell)

Bicep & Hammer Curls/Static Lunges (3 x 10 w/ 15 lb dumbbells ON EACH SIDE)

Single-Leg Deadlift/Row (3 x 10 w/ 30 lb barbell)

Incline Flies (3 x 10 w/15 lb dumbbells)

Tricep Kick-Backs (3 x 10 w/ 15 lb dumbbells)

Single Dumbbell Bicep Curl/Static Lunges (3 x 10 w/ 15 lb dumbbell ON EACH SIDE)

Seated Reverse Flies (3 x 10 w/ 15 lb dumbbells)

Standing Obliques (3 x 10 w/ 30 lb dumbbell ON EACH SIDE)

Standing Front Raises (3 x 10 w/ 10 lb dumbbells)

Push Ups/Plank w/ Side Leg Lift (3 sets, 1 push-up and 1 leg lift)

Abs (4 sets of 25, bicycles and crunches)

…and then I taught cycle. Needless to say, my legs were TIRED on that bike!