Giving it a Tri

But I've learned about all the warning gates I walked through that caused it.

1. Morning ride. Normally what I like to do, but I didn't properly hydrate before setting out. Pre-hyrdation is important, especially in...

2. The heat. It was a 98 degree day. I wanted to train in the heat because the Tri will be hot. But I didnt know how much this impacts your cycling. Running? Just suffer through it. But things CHANGE on the bike in the heat.

3. Don't try to PR the week before your race, bro. Why was I trying to sub 50? In conditions I had never biked in?? Lack of critical thinking there.

4. Listen to your body. I felt the cramp 3 miles before it hit but wanted that PR, so I pushed past the warnings. Stop and stretch, the punishment isn't worth the stats.

5. Hydrate on the ride! I had water and electrolytes on the bike, but I was pushing threshold the whole time and was working too hard to drink! Ah the clarity of hindsight.

I'm so so so excited. Im feeling better, and I feel ready. My original plan was to aim for sub two hours, but I had a very grounding bike ride today, where I pushed hard the whole time, still couldn't crack sub 50 minutes, and got a massive calf cramp. Im a shit cycler, and I dont want to ruin my run by pushing too hard on the bike. So it goes! I'll have a great time anyway!

Get home from work trip with a PAINFUL sore throat that is not strep and not covid.

I sub 30'd my 5k!

This race has been stressing me out all week and I fucking DID IT.

on Monday at the gym I flared my plantar fasciitis, which i haven't felt in YEARS! I took it super seriously. No exercising, stretching, shoes indoors, TENS unit on my calf daily. And I was feeling good enough by the end of the week to go for it.

It was tougher than I expected, I was feeling really prepared before this foot. But I dug deep and got it done. So stoked.

And I had a great time after the race. A friend of mine found me at the race. His brother has won the race 3 years in a row (came in 3rd this year oops) and we all got to hang out afterwards and it's nice to vibe with new people.

I mean, I love cycling now, but when do I get better at it, haha.

Also my new wetsuit arrived

So I made it up the hill and pulled over and had my husband drive over the water that I left in the driveway (so close)

The rest of the ride went better, and when I got back onto a road I knew, my speed got way better.

Pulled into my garage for transition and started the run. This isn't my first brick run but apparently and hour and 7 min on the bike is a different beast. I dont think I was feeling good until the 20 min mark.

I think this is the first bike ride that I TRULY enjoyed. I was excited to go, and had a great time. Was barely scared. When some car cut me off to make a right turn, I just got mad, didn't even get all scared and shaken. I'm a changed weirdo.

Oops, and I also bought a tri wetsuit... the tri organizers talked me into it, and swimming feels like the one sport I may be able to return to by next summer

But I had a great swim this morning!

Im still here, im still training! I've been feeling a lot of doubt about my choice to do the tri before having surgery. But the goal is to stay motivated and get as strong as possible before surgery.

I've signed up for two 5ks before the tri. The first is in May, and Id love to sub 30. But speed is my enemy on these hips. Running around a 9:30 pace feels so good when im out, but the next day I truly pay for it.

I went for my first outdoor ride of the year last weekend! I didn't fall, but my pace was shiiiiit haha, ill need to make some big moves there.

And lastly, I've been taking swim classes and my instructor said I had a "beautiful stroke" this week 🤩 go me.

I did a 20 minute jog today. Even with all the injuries and breaks from running, my pace has really increased from the speed work I did over the summer. Averaging a 10 min mile a couple years ago would have been unbelievable for me! But my hips don't feel great after. Lots of ice. It'll be a bumpy ride. But I'm going to do what feels good and try to have fun.

The dreaded decision.

In september of 2024 I was running with the run club, about a 5-6 mile run. With about a mile to go, I started feeling some discomfort in my hips. But it was a group run. I kept going. When we ended, I sat on the ground to stretch and I couldn't get back up. I tend to laugh when I'm hurting, so I think people thought I was joking. I stumbled to my car, actually had to be grabbed and pulled onto the sidewalk because I almost fell over into traffic. I remember laughing and crying up the stairs when I got home saying this was the most pain I've ever been in. My husband supervised me in the shower so I didn't fall over.

I went to PT. After a few months, it felt better. I started running again, gradually increasing my time and distance. Doing it right I thought.

I signed up with my team for our relay Tri. About a month before the race, my hips started hurting again and I went back to PT. Recovered enough to do the race and just slightly miss a PR.

The dream consolidated to do the full Tri next year. I got a bike. I started this blog. I started swimming. I wanted to improve my running, so I signed up for a 10K in November. I planned an 8 week training plan. But took 2 weeks off the top because of pain. When I started the training, things got bad FAST. There was one run I felt like I was running through tar and there was sandpaper in my joints. At this point I felt strongly it wasn't muscular. But I started PT again. FINALLY went to an OT. He referred me for Arthrograms. He also told me that it didn't really matter because I "wasn't running marathons".

Arthrograms revealed my suspicion. Bilateral Labral Tears and FAI Cam impingement.

I saw a surgeon today. He says surgery is my next step. That I've failed PT enough that more won't change anything. I can either have two surgeries, or change my lifestyle.

I don't know. I don't know what to do. IS running this important to me? Do I want this so bad that I'm willing to go through this? I think that answer is yes? But when? Can I still do the Tri? I still don't think my swimming is good enough to do it. Do I really want to wait until July? But I don't want to wait until AFTER all this to try again for a Tri.

It would be easy to quit. But this drive has changed my life.