Do you ever feel prepared?

[jenniferh]

I know it is still early, but I'm already feeling like there is no hope I'll be well enough trained. I'm doing a sprint tri (300m swim, 10m bike, 3m run) on Oct 10th.

I'm a swimmer from years past so I know I just needed time in the water. My first swim was painful, but I can see a huge improvement already. I can do a 600yd with just a couple of breaks and if I really had to, I could swim the 300m without stopping right now. Speed is a different issue but I'm doing drill to work on that.

I love cycling and that has been my focus for months. I can easily do the 10m so I'm not worried at all. I'm working on speed here too just for grins.

The run, on the other hand, just might send me to my grave. I'm getting very discouraged. I haven't run since I was a kid and I started 3 weeks ago with a plan to run 2min, walk 1 and then increase the time I was running each week so I'd be running the whole thing by Oct. Well, the first week I could barely muster 2 min. Now I can do the 2min, but barely and I'm not sure I can run 3min straight. I feel like my training is going horribly slowly and the only way to improve the running is to sacrifice the swim or bike.

Does everyone feel like that? Is there hope? Am I just stressing myself out too much?

[colby]

On the bright side, you've got 2 of the 3 mastered well enough, and the run comes last. A lot of people in sprint tris end up walking some or even all of the distance. You have a lot of time - 6 weeks - to build up your running to even run part of the distance, even if you don't run it all. If you enjoy the race, there will be more opportunities to race in the future, for you to run more and be more prepared.

You've got a lot of time - you can do it. Once you build up some base running fitness, things will improve faster. You went from running zero minutes to running 2 minutes - that's an infinite improvement. From here, things get easier. Just take it one day at a time and if you have to take walk breaks during the race, so what? You'll still be a triathlete.

And despite as many races as I've done, I always have the nagging "did I do enough" - you just have to learn to tell yourself YES, I will have the best race I can have. Adapt and overcome, learn and have fun!

[HillSlugger]

For me the answer is no, I never feel as prepared as I want to be. All the promises to myself of "more bricks" and "more OWS", well, I'm out of time (Iron Girl is Sunday!). This is my 4th year of triathlon so I know I can (and will) do it, but, no, I still feel under prepared.

You still have lots of time to improve your running, and it's no disgrace to walk.

[Veronica]

No - I never feel prepared. I know I can swim the distance and the bike is no big deal. But I never feel like I've run enough or done enough bricks. The night before and the morning of EVERY race I wonder - WTF am I doing? But something happens when I cross that finish line. I don't know if it's an endorphin rush or what... but I'm happy. Not just that I'm done suffering, but pleased that I've accomplished something.

Veronica

[roadie gal]

No way. I always feel that there "was more I could have done". I get nervous the night before. I'm a wreck in the few hours before the race. But once I'm at the starting line I get focused and forget about being nervous.

Just keep plugging away at the running. Like others have said, many people walk all or part of the run. You'll be surprised at how well you'll do.

[sfa]

Sure I feel like I'm prepared all the time. Just never actually on the day or week of the race!

For the Iron Girl "dress rehearsal" a few weeks ago I felt great--I was wishing the race was that day. It was a beautiful thing. Now I'm wondering if I should even bother picking up my packet for the race. What's the point when I'm not even sure I can finish? Lousy workouts the past couple of weeks, dealing with stress like I've never felt before in my life and it's affecting my sleep, my resting heart rate, my eating habits, my ability to concentrate.

I seem to go in cycles like that, with my feeling of preparation peaking usually two weeks before the race, then uncertainty taking over.

The run is the only thing I DO feel prepared for this year--I really worked on my speed and endurance this spring, and it paid off. I never feel prepared for a swim. I just look at that as a part I have to get through. And I've had very little time on my bike this year--if I get out once or twice a week I'm lucky.

Sarah