Maeve Bracken
Women in Triathlon Weekend, October 2007- Although I have never been a competitive sportsperson, I have always participated in some sort of
sporting activity and maintained a reasonable level of fitness. That is until a few years ago when the combined demands of studying, a fulltime
job and a new house began to eat into my evenings and
weekends.
Then a persistent and very painful bursitis pushed me down the slippery slope. My bike languished lonely in the gloom of the garden shed; my hiking boots gathered dust at the back of the wardrobe. I paid my gym membership and from time to time crossed its threshold, more to scratch the itch of my fiscal conscience than for fitness sake. When I did the Inca trail last year, the ascent on day two posed more of a physical challenge than my sensitive ego was comfortable with. I didn’t like being back of the pack (and those at the top always get more rest!!). The aforementioned ego began to bruise as people in their forties, fifties, sixties and even seventies powered on past me up the mountain and out of sight!
So when in January of this year, a friend of my sister’s was recruiting participants for a charity triathlon, I signed up enthusiastically. I retrieved my runners, swimsuit and goggles from the dark depths of the gym bag and I bought a road bike. By the middle of August, I had participated in two sprint distance triathlons with ego intact and a glorious sense of achievement! As soon as I read about the Women’s Training weekend on the 3D site, I emailed Rachel and booked a place. I had read reviews of the June event and it seemed like a good opportunity to meet likeminded women and learn more about triathlon in an atmosphere of comradeship and noncompetitiveness. If, like me, you have left your twenties behind, there was no need to worry that the place would be “full of young ones.” There were plenty of us who are just coming into our prime (many of whom can give the “younger ones” more than a run for their money)!! Any ageanxiety was immediatelyallayed as soon as I surveyed the room. Sixty women of all ages, shapes, sizes and ability gathered in eager anticipation at the Marriot Hotel in Enfield. We were not disappointed.
The Triathlon Ireland team had put together a busy, two day schedule tailored to ability/experience. There were theory and information sessions on nutrition, triathlon as a sport (as opposed to three separate disciplines occurring in a sequence), femalespecific issues and planning your training schedule. Workshops based on the information sessions provided each of us an opportunity to focus more specifically on our needs in that area. They also provided each woman an opportunity to explore with the coaches her own questions in a small, safe and supportive group of peers of similar ability/experience. Practical sessions focused on swim technique, transition skills, strength and conditioning, bikefit and how to accomplish a flying mount without breaking your coccyx!
I was in the green group; a group of greenhorns with little or no experience in triathlon, even less knowledge about the sport but bucket loads of enthusiasm! We were gently nurtured through the weekend by the very able and experienced coaches, Maggie and Chris. Chris tutored us during the swim practical and did a videoanalysis of our swim technique. It cost me the illusion that I glide dolphinesque through the water but gained me a much improved high elbow!
Maggie facilitated us in exploring how to balance the demands of family, work and a social life with training for a triathlon. She emphasised the importance of quality over quantity and showed us how to plan a quality training session. If you can only train once in the week, make that session count! Thanks to Maggie, Mark, Rob and Chris, I’ve set some goals and I’m working on a plan. The old “random” planning (I’ll do something, sometime, somewhere….) approach to training has now been relegated to the dustbin.
I took away from the weekend an understanding of the benefit of making a realistic plan for your training, tailored to your own needs, lifestyle, commitments and budget. I also began to understand the importance of improving efficiency rather than just focusing on endurance; this may be old hat to you veterans but was a revelation to me. And it became clear that the devil is in the detail and what a difference the detail makes! No more tiptoe pedalling from this gal; I understand now why we do those swim drills and I’ll be investing in a pair of elasticated laces! The saddle on my bike has been adjusted to fit me better (thanks Peter!) and I’m less anxious about practising the flying mounts! I realised too that I have been cycling around on marshmallow tyres for the past ten months. Now if someone could just show me how the gears work….
Noticeably absent from the weekend were gadgets and jargon. For a technophobe such as I, this was a great relief. I can’t even operate the gears on the bike; put a bike computer or a heart rate monitor in front of me and I break out in a cold sweat. Most importantly, I left the weekend feeling confident and with a cando attitude. This I think was Triathlon Ireland’s greatest achievement of the weekend. When the body starts to flag, determination and a positive mental attitude carry you over the finish line. Rachel, Jag and their team succeeded in creating an inclusive and supportive experience and the women there learned that there is something for everyone in triathlon and a place for all. I’m looking forward to the next women’s training event.
So as I head into 2008, my resolve is firm and I have a plan. No more marshmallow tyres. I’m off to buy a foot pump!
If you would like information on further events please email: sinead.rowland@gmail.com
To read more about the first ever Women's Triathlon Training Weekend click here or see our gallery for a selction of photographs.