i am a triathlete

On January 21 i was flamed on Twitter because i "claim" to be a triathlete and admit to being overweight.  I have always been open about this, though i know not everyone has read everything i have ever written (in fact, i know that no one has, because there are many things i have written that are as of yet private or unreleased for general viewing).  One of the persons flaming me was another triathlete, which i thought was a little odd, but i suppose that there are jerks in any sport.  Oddly enough, calling myself a triathlete is one of the few things that i don't feel like a poser/fraud for doing.

To start off with, i didn't simply get up one day and decide to complete a triathlon, go out, and then do it. I didn't even know what a triathlon was until i watched the Sydney Olympics of 2000. I spent a few of years boggling that anyone could do such a thing, still entirely ignorant of what an Ironman was, but intrigued and pulled in a way.  I mostly scoffed at even daydreaming that i could ever do such a thing.

Then i tentatively started learning how to run.  I started the Couch to 5k program on a whim, really, in September, 2008, but didn't finish it in nine weeks.  For some reason (school and holidays?) i simply stopped for nearly three months and picked it up again midstride by repeating the last week i had completed.  A couple months later i decided to take the plunge and added biking and swimming to my training regimen.  I ran my first 5k in the middle of two months of  training for to compete in my first Sprint triathlon.

I didn't win that triathlon, not even for my age range, but i did finish, and i didn't come in last. I beat one of the groups of competitors even, which i found to be odd.  I mean, if you're going to only complete one leg then hopefully you excel at that leg and are going to be able to push yourself harder, go full out, rather than pace yourself.

I feel that completing even one triathlon makes me a triathlete. It was only a Sprint, not an Olympic or an Ironman, but i finished it.  I exercised 5-6 days a week for over two months.  After that i kept training.  Even after i had a running injury i kept training. The only reason i stopped training was because it was interfering with my homework and my primary goal was to graduate from college.  Even at that time i would have been riding my bicycle three days a week had i been able to get my bike to campus.

Now my thoughts are turning to preparing for the same Sprint triathlon that i once competed in.  It will be four years since i competed in it for the first time.  That date is about four months away and i weigh more now that i did when i competed in it the first time. My goal has always been to be healthy and persevere far more than it has been to lose weight or improve my time.  I have always figured that those last two would come on their own.

Six months ago i think i weighed more than i ever had before, but i kept hiking and riding my bike.  I didn't let myself go and break 300, i tried to keep active.  I tried counting calories and have been reading about various diets.  The thing that i always remember is that the times when i lost the most weight was when i was very active and ate however much my body told me i needed to.  I have been told that "All things in moderation" is cliche and a platitude but it's what i live my life by.  Even when i feel hungry all the time i don't want to let myself overeat. By the same token, any time i diet i don't want to let myself get/stay so hungry that i give up and binge.  I don't want to exercise too hard and injure myself.  Food + water = fuel that i need.

Things that are going to be different w/training this time around. One, i weigh more and have had several injuries since i stopped training.  Two, i am not starting this journey while already running three days a week, so i may need to ease into it. Three, i am older. Four, i don't want to just prove to myself that i can do this anymore.  I will always be competing against my former self, but this time i want to also do it to prove to the naysayers that it's possible and to inspire those who are too afraid to try.  I might not be able to give insight or encouragement to anyone on a spiritual front, but on a physical one i am here to tell you that it is possible, you do have the power in yourself to do it, and you really have to just take it one step at a time.