Week two was a success! I survived the week without any near-death experiences, which is always a plus. However, this week I truly realized how much my decision to train for my first triathlons has changed my life. Not only does training help make me stronger and provide me with mental clarity, but it has brought friends into my life I would not have met otherwise. These people are crazy, quirky, and borderline insane, but they are filled with resilience, love, and kindness. They are the exact people you want to see during the tough times, the kind of people who put a smile on your face regardless of anything else going on in your life. I do not think they could ever know how special they have made this journey for me.

I’ve also realized that triathlon has three sports…obviously…but you truly do have to train for each sport. I spent the majority of this winter and spring working on bike and swimming skills. I had only biked with your typical 12-speed bike I had as a kid, but switching gears on Lola (a Windsor Knight road bike with GORGEOUS lavender handlebars) was a whole different ball game, and we all know how I felt about swimming. Running? Pssh. Easy. I can run. One foot in front of the other. I can do that. In fact, while I didn’t spend much time running this winter, I found my 5k times were steadily increasing with each race. The obvious rationale was my training for bike and swim would work the same muscles as running, therefore allowing me to not have to worry about running at all. Right?

Oh I could not have been more wrong.

Having 5’10” of a body floating weightless in water or being toted around on two wheels is much different than having alllllll that weight on hard pavement, especially in the heat. During some rather breathless runs, I realized my original theory had been debunked. I need to get my feet in gear!

I am thankful that May is almost over. In my opinion, it is the worst running month. Yes, the sun is out, but boy is it OUT. According to my lungs, humidity, pollen, trees, fresh cut grass, and chemicals are individually recipes for disasters, let alone combined. I always spend May cursing my lungs as they desperately try to adjust and wondering if I will ever run like a normal person again. But, with each day spent on the road, I know I am least making progress. Every run makes me stronger, and although the weather continues to make me struggle, I am content. There is victory in every stride.

My swimming this week was cut short due to a weekend trip to Boston. I only had one day in the pool that involved drills and 8x100 to close out the night. My trip also unfortunately forced me to miss coaching bike on Saturday. I owe Lola some serious love next week! However, I did throw on my dancing shoes to get in a little bit of a “cardio workout” this weekend. When you can’t run, bike, or swim, then choose the best fourth option: dance!

I don’t think stilettoes would fare well in transition…