Tri-Di? Why?

It's a diary of my attempt to train for and compete in the Pawling Triathlon, on June 2, 2007. That date is almost exactly 13 months from the moment when I decided that I could not go one more day as I'd been - gaining weight, feeling physically and emotionally tired, achy, and old. At 41 years old, I felt like it was now or never - I was half-way through my life and couldn't spend the rest of it feeling this way. Inspired by a friend who lost 15 pounds (how did she do it? she ate less and exercised more) I started doing the same in May 2006. I started with walking and swimming. After a month or two, I heard Jayne Williams, author of Slow Fat Triathlete, on the radio (the subtitle is "living your athletic dreams in the body you have now."). She was so funny and down to earth that the thought crossed my mind, for the first time, that I could do something like that. I've run in a few races over the years - in New York in the late 80's I ran in a few "Corporate Challenge" 5K's, and here I've entered the 5 mile road race for the day care center twice. In almost every race I've ever run, I've come in last or almost last - as the old blues song goes, I'm built for comfort, baby, I ain't built for speed.

But I got my bike out of of storage and fixed it up, added spinning and now, running to my workout schedule. I've lost 23 pounds (from 222 to 199), and I can take a 45 minute spinning class, run for 19 minutes without stopping, and swim for 30. I hope to lose 30 more pounds and be ready to compete by next June: it's a 1/3 mile swim, 13 mile bike ride, and 3 mile run. Seems pretty daunting, but I have six more months to train and I think my body could do it.

I don't think it will be interesting to read (or write) about equipment, or workout schedules, or nutritional supplements, or weigh-ins. But maybe I'll find something to say that will be entertaining, enlightening or otherwise useful.