The good news is that because of my two-week tussle with the flu I've lost all of my post-vacation booze weight. The bad news is that I've also lost two weeks of training. Hence, my first triathlon has been moved to mid-July instead of the end of May. I'm disappointed but I'd be way more disappointed if I got a DNF in my first tri.
I'm competing in the Coral Springs “Tri-It” on July 18th, www.coralspringstriathlon.com. It includes an open-water swim which the original tri I was signed up did not have. The event is short; 350 m swim, 10 km bike and 2.5 km run. If it goes well, I'm going to move on to Sprint length with the end goal of competing in Olympic length triathlons. I've yet to get the Ironman bug but I won't rule it out. If my years of weigh loss have taught me anything, it's that anything is possible if you set your mind on it. As though it was meant to be, my latest Shape magazine arrived with a three month tri training plan. I've decided to blog daily about my efforts as a way of keeping engaged in the process. Today I started with swimming:
http://www.shape.com/fitness/sports/training_triathlon_week_1
When I first contemplated competing in triathlon, I was most worried about the running portion. However, now that I run regularly, my weakest of the three events has shifted. I hadn't gone for a swim in the last year and a half (which is stupid because it would have been the perfect pregnancy activity) until tonight. It wasn't as bad as I'd feared but I definitely have my work cut out for me over the next three months. The great thing about having a plan (as above) is that I don't have to think too hard about what I'm going to do for exercise. I have a tendency to over train and injure myself. This way, all I need to do is plan my time to get the workout in. I also could have gone for a bike ride tonight but cycling is the least of my worries for this event.
By the end of the next three months, I will have all but ten of my pregnancy pounds eliminated. By September, I'll be back to my pre-pregnancy weight and by December 1st, I will be at my goal weight. It seems like a long time but I know that in reality, it's not. I keep hitting weight loss milestones that I've hit before and I'm not nearly as excited as I was the first time. Last time I was at the weight I'm at I felt really good about my progress. Right now I feel like a giant manatee (especially at the pool). Having said that, I'm also a full dress size smaller than I was the last time I was at this weight which tells me what a difference the running makes.