I don't remember exactly when or why the idea "do a triathlon before you're 30!" popped into my head. (I'm sure Runner's World deserves some of the credit/blame.)
It's been at least a year, though, since it crossed my mind, and even with ample warning, I still didn't manage to do my hometown's annual duathlon in the spring. Weird work schedule blah blah blah, I told those who called me out on it.
The true barriers to achieving this goal, though, are my poor swimming skills and refusal to pay for access to a pool.
Enter some college besties with a brilliant solution: "Let's do the Hy-Vee Triathlon next year as a relay team," they said as they showered me and my cat with housewarming gifts.
A shortcut to a bucket list item? Even better than catnip/shiny items/fleece blankies/fluffy new towels!
Chelsea can swim the 1.5K, because Zach sinks like a stone and I dislike getting my face wet and struggling to breathe (completely different from having my face merely damp from sweat and struggling to breathe).
I can run the 10K, because Chelsea and Zach, despite having completed the Warrior Dash with me in 2011 and pounding the pavement like champs during heat waves, hate running.
Zach can bike the 25K, by process of elimination.
And I can ironically call myself a triathlete before age 30 — with three years to spare, even.
Showing posts with label Warrior Dash. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Warrior Dash. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Friends and 5Ks
Today, in lieu of bragging on/mocking my running, I would like to brag on some friends/fellow Truman State Bulldogs who have been bitten by the running bug.
It started with Zach and Chelsea (fellow Warrior Dash participants), who did a 5K in May even though both admitted on separate occasions that they hate running.
I was happy for them then, but I was floored (in a good way) by them a few months later: On the Fourth of July, they took an early-afternoon run. Remember how hot it was that day? "You don't even want to know how slow we went," they said, but sheesh, just the fact that they periodically moved faster than a walk deserves a high-five and a cold beer.
Next came Jessica. She's been running in the St. Louis heat — oppressive enough where she returns from runs "drenched" and is laughed at by her dad — as she trains for the Torchlight 5K on Aug. 31. Luckily, that's an evening run, so if she can survive outside right now, she'll rock the actual race.
And finally, there's Ashlee (apparently the new star of my blog). The Color Run comes to Des Moines on Oct. 6, and she's committed financially and publicly to doing it — in my opinion, the best way to force yourself to make running a habit.
It's always exciting when your friends pick up your hobby, without your putting guilt or pressure on them. But I think it's especially awesome when that hobby is something demanding like running.
A lot of people have to make a conscious decision to push through the discomfort for weeks or months before running becomes fun ... or at least before they find it rewarding enough to tolerate the sweat, fatigue, boredom, side stitches, etc.
During many runs, I still feel that way, and that, perversely, is what makes me so psyched for my friends. It takes work — work that I understand from experience — but the payoff, of the endorphin rush and sense of accomplishment and appreciation for showers, clean clothes and food, is so excellent that I'm glad they're sharing it.
It started with Zach and Chelsea (fellow Warrior Dash participants), who did a 5K in May even though both admitted on separate occasions that they hate running.
I was happy for them then, but I was floored (in a good way) by them a few months later: On the Fourth of July, they took an early-afternoon run. Remember how hot it was that day? "You don't even want to know how slow we went," they said, but sheesh, just the fact that they periodically moved faster than a walk deserves a high-five and a cold beer.
Next came Jessica. She's been running in the St. Louis heat — oppressive enough where she returns from runs "drenched" and is laughed at by her dad — as she trains for the Torchlight 5K on Aug. 31. Luckily, that's an evening run, so if she can survive outside right now, she'll rock the actual race.
And finally, there's Ashlee (apparently the new star of my blog). The Color Run comes to Des Moines on Oct. 6, and she's committed financially and publicly to doing it — in my opinion, the best way to force yourself to make running a habit.
It's always exciting when your friends pick up your hobby, without your putting guilt or pressure on them. But I think it's especially awesome when that hobby is something demanding like running.
A lot of people have to make a conscious decision to push through the discomfort for weeks or months before running becomes fun ... or at least before they find it rewarding enough to tolerate the sweat, fatigue, boredom, side stitches, etc.
During many runs, I still feel that way, and that, perversely, is what makes me so psyched for my friends. It takes work — work that I understand from experience — but the payoff, of the endorphin rush and sense of accomplishment and appreciation for showers, clean clothes and food, is so excellent that I'm glad they're sharing it.
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