If Triathlon and I were FBO (Facebook Official) our relationship status would have gone through a recent change: from “in a relationship” to “it’s complicated.” People might comment on our status update with things like “what happened!?” “you can make it work!” or “there are other sports out there, you’ll find one.”
While I’m certainly not giving up on Triathlon, I’ve definitely left the honeymoon phase and am starting to question our relationship. Maybe we moved too fast? I mean, it was only last June that I learned to ride a road bike and went for my first open water swim. In less than a year we went from strangers to making the ultimate commitment – the Ironman. Maybe we should have eased into things first and took it slow.
The Ironman was epic. I’m so glad I did it and I don’t regret a single dollar (and it was a lot) that I spent. I don’t regret the sacrifices of free time, sleep, or time with loved ones. Crossing the finish line of the Ironman was one of the biggest accomplishments of my life (although my Dad likes to remind me that getting my CPA made him more proud) and it is a memory I will certainly cherish forever. I plan to tell be the annoying mother that reminds her children that she once crossed 140.6 miles in one day when they complain about walking a few yards to the mailbox or spending an hour on their feet at the mall.
After the Ironman I took two full weeks of of training and when I did get back into it, I had absolutely no desire to swim or ride my bike. Running is certainly my true passion and I even struggled with that following the Ironman. My runs were exhausting and the heat added an additional challenge, making most runs very slow and somewhat miserable. Prior to the race I had anticipated signing up for an Olympic distance triathlon in September so that I could get one more race in this year and also test out my new amazing endurance due to hundreds of hours of swim/bike/run. However, when it came down to it, I only signed up for the race because I won an entry, and I ended up downgrading to the sprint.
I gave myself 3 weeks to train for the sprint triathlon and as of now, it’s looking like I will have only gotten in three swims and three outdoor bike rides in that time-frame. My swims have been short and anything but fabulous. The bike rides have been enjoyable but I always start them pissed off at how long it takes to get ready to go for a bike ride (my 33 miler last week essentially took up 5 hours of my time with preparation, commute,etc). The thought of never doing triathlon again crossed my mind during each of these workouts. When I looked up the race info for the sprint this weekend I almost considered not even doing it because I would have to drive so far to the Expo on Friday and wake up so early on Saturday morning to get to transition in time.
This morning I actually had a quite enjoyable ride down the coast before work. The sun was rising and the weather was perfectly cool yet not cold. I enjoyed every moment of this ride and it actually sparked some excitement for the upcoming race. I definitely plan to race this weekend. I’m very interested to see how it feels and if I truly enjoy it. I absolutely love racing triathlon and have never had a race that I didn’t enjoy. I distinctly remember thinking during Oceanside 70.3, I’ve finally found my sport. I know that my relationship with triathlon isn’t over, but I do think that we need some time apart.
So while most of my blogger and Twitter triathlete friends that trained for an Ironman this year have signed up for another 140.6 next year, as of now I have no plans for a long course triathlon. Next year my focus will be to qualify for Boston and based on the way I’ve been running lately, it’s going to take a lot of work to get there. Triathlon is extremely time-consuming since you are constantly trying to get really good at three different sports. Even if you practice each sport three times a week, you will never become excellent at any of them. My plan is to become an excellent runner and then reintroduce triathlon into my life and work on the other two sports.
One thing I do still enjoy is reading other people’s race reports and training stories. By no means do I plan to stop reading my favorite triathlon blogs or having discussions with Asia and Jeremy about their upcoming Ironman. I still love the sport – I’m just not in love right now.
Have you ever had to take a break from a sport or hobby? How long did it take for you to to become interested in it again?
I can relate to so much of this – relatively new to tri, hit it full speed for a couple of years with a bunch of IMs, and then felt the effects of burn out this summer. I am registered for both IMWI and Vegas 70.3 this weekend and I’m not doing either one! My advice is: you will know when you are ready to sign up for another race and start training again. We do this for fun, so if the training is not something you are excited about right now, lay low and enjoy other things until the urge to tri comes back, which it probably will at some point. In the meantime, happy running!
I usually take 2 1-2 month breaks from training per year. I usually keep working out, but do classes at the gym, lift, or try some other type of activity. More than 6 months of the same activity without a break makes me really burnt out. You’ll get the triathlon love back again someday!
I’m actually having a hard time coming back to running after the first half IM that I did this summer. Biking has felt fun, relaxed and natural, but running is just a bitch. I have an Olympic tri next weekend and have considered not even showing up, but I know that it has the potential to be a beautiful and fun race which I would like to enjoy.
I definitely think that Boston is a huge goal, and it sounds like you are being very deliberate about your focus.
That said – enjoy the tri this weekend!
your love will come back. enjoy the weekend!
I love this post and can completely relate. Triathlon is not only time consuming, but you also have to be mentally committed. It’s just too taxing otherwise to train for three sports.
Have fun with your sprint and then focus on running next year. I bet after that you’ll be itching to get back to tri!
Embrace the break – it’s natural nto matter what sport you’re doing. And more importantly, just try to have fun this weekend. Don’t worry about time. Just go and smile 🙂