Inspirational Steve mentioned something about the importance of tapering before a big event. This means that you cut down on your training so that you are fresh and eager for the main event.
I like the sound of anything that involves less training, so decided I was going to taper for today's triathlon. My tapering involved two distinct stages;
1) A mini-break to Switzerland and France, visiting CERN and going up a mountain. One of my ex husbands used to say that you haven't been somewhere properly unless you've been up something. As I was tapering, I got the cable car up instead of running. TBH I probably would have gotten the cable car anyway, but now I had an excuse. I always say that you haven't been somewhere properly until you've eaten all of their local specialities. In Switzerland it's fondue. And it comes in meat, cheese AND chocolate varieties. I had all three. Several times.
2) Another mini-break to London for CS's birthday. Shopping and poker. On the Saturday evening before the triathlon I was at the Grosvenor Victoria, drinking free wine and winning a poker tournament.
I'm good at this tapering thing.
I wish I was as good at this triathlon lark. Talk of lark, up with the larks we were this morning. At 5.30. Ouch.
This triathlon is a 'sprint' distance. Except of course there was no sprinting involved in my case. See the PS for a boring race analysis thing that triathletes are supposed to do, and which I will do, but will make it optional for me to ever read again.....
I've had a dodgy foot for a while, so wasn't sure I'd be able to complete the course, but there was nothing stopping me from doing the swim and bike bit. Other than being a pants swimmer and still not being able to ride a bike like a grown up.
However, to my complete surprise, and actually, yes, joy, I managed to complete the whole thing. And I wasn't last. And I won a prize! For finishing fourth!
OK the prize was for the 'who can smile the most at the marshalls' competition. And it was a rubber band. But it's a prize! I won something! I'm still chuffed to bits. Whoever said that it's not about the winning something, it's the taking part, has never won a rubber band for smiling at marshalls. Next time I want at least third place, even if it involves cheating.
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| Me, at the end of the triathlon. Just checking that my bum still looked big. It still did. It still does. |
Now all I've got to do is at least twice that in three months time. I mustn't forget to taper. I'm good at that bit.
PS........ The debrief.
400m swim.
This was in a pool, and involved swimming up and down 8 lengths of a 25m pool, starting one side of the pool and ending up on the other. I worked out that this meant 16 lengths in total. I didn't even need a calculator to do that, so maybe I'm getting the hang of all this mental maths. However I didn't take into account the amount of work it takes to swim under one of those lane markers. You'd think it would be easy, but it was really hard. I also didn't take into account how deep the pool was, and so when I jumped in at the start, I ended up completely submerged and swallowed some water. Got all befuddled, and just about managed to put my goggles on in time. In my befuddledness I pressed the wrong button on my poolmate and instead of recording my swim, I've managed to set an alarm for 5.45 every morning. It's a real shame, as, according to my calculations (yes, using a calculator), I would have managed an efficiency rating of 49.5. This was one of my goals I set last month in Vegas. Anything under 50 means that I am an 'above average' swimmer. But thinking about it, what is an 'average swimmer'? Maybe it's best NOT to think about it......
This was in a pool, and involved swimming up and down 8 lengths of a 25m pool, starting one side of the pool and ending up on the other. I worked out that this meant 16 lengths in total. I didn't even need a calculator to do that, so maybe I'm getting the hang of all this mental maths. However I didn't take into account the amount of work it takes to swim under one of those lane markers. You'd think it would be easy, but it was really hard. I also didn't take into account how deep the pool was, and so when I jumped in at the start, I ended up completely submerged and swallowed some water. Got all befuddled, and just about managed to put my goggles on in time. In my befuddledness I pressed the wrong button on my poolmate and instead of recording my swim, I've managed to set an alarm for 5.45 every morning. It's a real shame, as, according to my calculations (yes, using a calculator), I would have managed an efficiency rating of 49.5. This was one of my goals I set last month in Vegas. Anything under 50 means that I am an 'above average' swimmer. But thinking about it, what is an 'average swimmer'? Maybe it's best NOT to think about it......
I overtook some people, which was a bit odd. Normally I'm overtaken. Of course it's a bit difficult to overtake in a narrow pool lane when people are swimming up and down at the same time. There's a certain etiquette, which involves tapping the foot of the person in front - this acts as a signal for the person ahead to please stop at the end of the length, and allow the person behind to kick off first. I have always followed this etiquette when tapped. However, now it was me doing the tapping. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to get close enough to someone to tap their foot when they're inadvertently kicking you in the face? Every time you reach out for their foot, they move it and you drown a little bit. After my fifth attempt to tap gently, I grabbed with both hands, and almost drowned the both of us. Ooops. Luckily my tappee was lovely and understanding about it once she got all the water out of her lungs.
I finished in 9 mins 54 seconds. Which chuffed the hell out of me.
25.5k bike.
I didn't get lost! That chuffed the hell out of me too. I almost enjoyed it. Actually I did enjoy it. I managed it in 1 hour 5 minutes. However this time includes the transition from pool to bike and then from bike to run. I still wasn't sure whether or not I would actually do any of that running business, so I took my time in transition. I put my bike back. Stood. Paused. Coughed. Drank something. Coughed again. Paused. Coughed again. One of the marshalls said "At least *try* to sound a bit athletic". Really. However for some daft reason it made me laugh. And think "Why not give it a go? I'm here now, all I've got to do is run 5k."
I didn't get lost! That chuffed the hell out of me too. I almost enjoyed it. Actually I did enjoy it. I managed it in 1 hour 5 minutes. However this time includes the transition from pool to bike and then from bike to run. I still wasn't sure whether or not I would actually do any of that running business, so I took my time in transition. I put my bike back. Stood. Paused. Coughed. Drank something. Coughed again. Paused. Coughed again. One of the marshalls said "At least *try* to sound a bit athletic". Really. However for some daft reason it made me laugh. And think "Why not give it a go? I'm here now, all I've got to do is run 5k."
What was I thinking? "ALL I've got to do is run 5k"? I should know better. I've done a couple of 'sprints' before and I know how dreadful the run bit is. It's always worse than I expect. And I expect it to be dreadful. But I thought it might be different this time. Maybe it was the 'New Shoes' effect.....
5k run.
Well, it wasn't really a run, more of a coughing and panting stumble. And it wasn't bloody 5k either. It was 5.3k. I don't really remember much about it other than "Ow", and almost being directed into a Tesco Express. I do remember thinking that I must have been almost half way through the course and then seeing a sign saying '1km'. I almost ran back to Tescos. But somehow, and in a haze of denial, I finished. I managed 5.3k (please don't forget the .3k, very important) in a pretty impressive (for me) 33 minutes - which even included a sit down and a bit of a chat at the half way point.
Well, it wasn't really a run, more of a coughing and panting stumble. And it wasn't bloody 5k either. It was 5.3k. I don't really remember much about it other than "Ow", and almost being directed into a Tesco Express. I do remember thinking that I must have been almost half way through the course and then seeing a sign saying '1km'. I almost ran back to Tescos. But somehow, and in a haze of denial, I finished. I managed 5.3k (please don't forget the .3k, very important) in a pretty impressive (for me) 33 minutes - which even included a sit down and a bit of a chat at the half way point.
In the end I finished 245th out of 274 with 3 DNFs. But in the REAL competition I finished 4th out of 274 with 1 DNF (there was a DQ for abusive language from someone who wasn't me, and who was obviously not very good at smiling either). Proof below.
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