Tri a Fun New Challenge (by Pamela Routh

Tri a Fun New Challenge: Triathlon

By Pamela Routh

Buzz on the Memphis streets within the endurance sports community is Ironman 70.3 Memphis coming to Shelby Farms in October 2020. Memphis folks, many of whom have not ridden a bike in years, are signing up. They may not swim much, yet, but they can RUN!

Considering a fun new challenge by participating in a triathlon? Is swim, bike, and run for you?

Runners love to run, but too much running can cause overuse injuries or boredom: triathletes keep it fun by training in a different sport each day – the goal being each sport two times a week; swim, bike, run, and weight train. There are fewer overuse problems if you follow conservative distance buildups with not more than a 10% increase per week maximum. Cross training has even bigger benefits; it helps you improve your running. A big circle here.

If triathlon has your interest you might consider short, sweet and manageable. Sprint and Olympic Triathlons are to Ironman Triathlons what 5Ks / 10Ks are to marathons. Shorter distance triathlons allow you to do a lot less training, which works well for busy folks who work, have family and social obligations. You can race and train your way up to longer distances for late year, next year or maybe never.

Triathlon distances Super Sprint Triathlon: ¼ Mile Swim, 8 Mile Bike, 2 Mile Run – these distances can vary. Sprint Distance Triathlon: 1/3 Mile Swim, 12 Mile Bike, 3-Mile Run – distances can vary. Olympic Triathlon: .93 Swim, 40K Bike, 10K Run – SET distance – this is the distance in the Olympics. Long-course Triathlon: longer than Olympic. Half Ironman Distances: 1.2-Mile Swim, 56-Mile Bike, 13.1-Mile Run – SET distance. Ironman Distances: 2.4-mile Swim, 112-Mile Bike, 26.2-Mile Run – SET distance.

Relay teams are another way to try out this triathlon thing. Volunteering at a triathlon will also give you a lot of insight.

Swimming: Pools are all over the Memphis and the Midsouth, so practice and if you are new, or it has been a while, take a swim class to get your form correct, then work on distance and speed. Here the ole 10% increase per week rule applies again, yes, you can overdo shoulders, too. Upper body strength from swimming will help your running and is also a good all-body recovery sport.

Bike: 2 wheels, brakes and no motor is all you need for your first triathlon. You do not have to have a fancy bike to do triathlons. You can borrow a bike, rent a bike or buy one. Not knowing if you will like this sport, you may want to postpone buying one. When buying, shop local. Your local bike shops support local events that you want to do, plus they will be the one to fix your bike in the 9 th hour when needed. Be sure the bike is fitted to you or you will not ride it. Local bike shops do this, called a Bike Fit Kit. They adjust stuff on your bike like seat height and tilt, for comfort and injury prevention.

Running: You got this as you are a MRTC member. Expense: Not all triathlons are expensive. Large, notable events