Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018

Tri Santa Cruz Sprint triathlon: 0.5 mile swim (shortened to around 420 yards due to fog) + 12.8 mile biking + 3.1 mile run

The first one!

This post has long been pending but I recently took a vacation and that reminded me of how much I enjoy writing and of course, documenting as much as possible!  As a result, this one is going to be long. I've broken it down into parts so that the less amused reader can skip through the entire back story and/or the forward moving one.

The actual triathlon training started in April 2018, but in reality the idea was sown in December 2017 (no actually it all started in 2012 when I ran my first race, but that is a post for another day).

[Part I of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] Prologue: the back story

[Part II of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] March-May 2018: the actual training begins

[Part III of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] Jun-July 2018: almost there

[Part IV of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] 11 days of August, and the race day!

[Part V of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] What I learned and what worked (or not)

[Part V of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] What I learned and what worked (or not)

[Forked from the entire race report for ease of reading]

Previous:

[Part IV of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] 11 days of August, and the race day!

• It takes a village:
• I can't stress this enough- I may have done the miles on the final day, but it is a huge effort from a lot of people that went into this. Starting from team Asha, Coach Char, the alumni/captains, the coords, my cohort, my swimming coach, my HIIT instructor and the gang there- everyone did their part in making this happen. Thank you! I am thrilled to have a group I love to train with (I always did all prior race trainings alone, sigh). Having James around as a huge support and also training for his own races was a huge inspiration. My brother, who also started doing triathlons more recently, was as usual a fun companion to discuss anything under the sun with! All my other friends who cracked jokes at my expense as I put myself through yet another day of training, but nevertheless supported me in their own ways- thank you, everyone! 
• The mountain will always be there: 
• Throughout my training, I was always restless. James would wisely comment that the mountain will always be there, there will always be another race. I also remember telling my swimming coach that I wanted to go faster and she would tell me, lets fix your technique first. I also remember telling Coach that I'm so slow on the bike when he would say we all finished strong. I can't say I have fully learnt my lesson here, but maybe I'm 2% closer than what I had started. There isn't much point in rushing through the baby steps that you absolutely need to take.
• I was one of the 'new people' in the program who had never been with Team Asha before and who also did not have a strong running/biking/swimming background. This very much clashed with my crazy goal of wanting to do more and go faster, but I also realized that I couldn't jump some steps (doesn't mean I couldn't say that I wanted to swim to the bridge anyway:D)
• Know what works for you, prepared or winging:
• Not everyone is built the same way. I am definitely someone who needs to plan. Knowing that about me, really helped. There were plans for all weeks and all days. There was a list for what had to be done even in the final half hour between when I woke up and when we left for Santa Cruz. I'm aware that not everything is in your control, but whatever is, I love to plan the hell out of it. I feel you've got to know what works best for you and put yourself behind that strategy.
• Automate/Rehearse whatever you can:
• Wherever I could, I decided to simplify life by eliminating the number of things I had to plan for. For instance, working out on consecutive days during summer meant a constant need for laundry. But I wasn't always home enough or didn't have enough energy to finish one cycle. So I just found enough workout clothes at a decent price that would sustain me through 4 days without having to worry. Similarly, I started keeping a perpetual gym bag with me which had enough of the products I liked to use to make sure that lack of being home wasn't a reason to skip a workout. 
• In the same vein as above, I found it extremely helpful to practice using everything that I would on race day so that nothing was new.  In the mock tri, I even got along the race belt that I wanted to wear. I knew which bar I liked, which flavor of Nuun motivated me to drink more water (true story!) and which one made me want to throw up. 
• Good gear/clothing matters:
• I realized I didn't have to overdo it, but small tweaks along the way made the ride smoother. For instance, I remember feeling a sunburn on my arms during biking in early rides. As a result, I started wearing either a full sleeve jersey or a thin rain jacket, both of these made me sweat like crazy. Also, I would leave the jacket partly open for the air and one of the bike captains pointed out that it might be slowing me down. I remember talking to Hardeep and ended up buying a pair of arm sleeves- best decision ever, and solved the problem. 
• Nutrition:
• I never skipped breakfast and also made it a point to drink extra water on the days when we went for our bike rides in the sun. I kept a Nalgene at work which I aimed to finish before I left for the day and I kept a Nalgene next to my bed which I aimed to finish before I left for work. I drank water between workouts and after too. I don't know if this made as much of a difference but once I became more regular, I felt more energy throughout the day. I also made it a point to eat a light snack (banana/greek yogurt mostly) an hour before a workout, especially if it was during the weekday. I also tried my best to get some protein right after a workout (chocolate milk/greek yogurt yet again!)
• Know the why: Is this the end or is this a step?
• This was probably my most important lesson. Just like everyone else, I had a lot going on in my life other than the triathlon and I was very tempted to put all of it on hold to focus on my training. But I realized that I wasn't doing a triathlon as a one time thing that will end after August 12. Sure, I needed to give up some things temporarily, but I wanted this to become a more gradual part of my life. For this, it was important to not give up other big things- my other races, my backpacking trip, the extra hours that a new team sometimes required, skipping a session to cheer someone else for their big race..It was really important for me to know why I am doing this and not unfairly compare myself to anyone else. This was going to be my journey, so I better be writing the script for it.
• Don't skip the mental training: 
• As I mentioned in my experience above, this was an important factor in me finishing and trying new things during training. Somedays I felt a little disconcerted that I was planning way out to do things that I knew my body wasn't ready for yet, but deciding that the two things are independent helped me keep up my spirits and confidence throughout- even when the results didn't. 
• What could have worked better?
• I definitely need to work on my nutrition outside of the workout sessions. I don't cook as much and my diet could definitely be healthier. In addition, I'm excited to try out protein powders!
• Spin sessions: Given my general feelings towards riding next to vehicular traffic, I realize that I need to go out and ride more but also engage in more spin sessions to make sure I don't lose out on developing those muscles. I also need to get those cleats.
• Less mental agony about the slow pace of progress: This one is less specific to triathlon for me, but if the mind is flustered, think of what the body will do.
• Know when to push, but know when not: I know I can run faster than I do, but due to a multitude of factors, I am hesitant about pushing myself- this is an area where I need to work! But at the same time, sometimes I went overboard with training and got too tired and even fell sick. I'm slowly getting better at listening to my body.
• Work on strength or weakness? This one is tricky. If I was good at a certain thing, should I keep doing that to get better and make that my stronghold, or do I push on the other two to get everything up to a certain level. I handled this one not so well and often ended up skipping one for the sake of other.

What's next?
I am using the time to train myself to be stronger and faster in each of the individual sports. I really hope to attempt atleast one Ironman 70.3 event next year :D Am I there yet? Miles from it- but when did reality ever get in the way of leaping before I look!

[Part IV of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] 11 days of August, and the race day!

[Forked from the entire race report for ease of reading]

Previous:

[Part III of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] Jun-July 2018: almost there

As a result of the Ragnar relay in July, I had missed the Santa Cruz clinic- I had never done a swim in an ocean! Coach advised to go for the clinic for sure so I was doing it a week before the race. Was a worthwhile exercise as it made me realize how cold it would be and of course, the waves! We also did a mock tri as a team at Gull park the very next day- I felt sluggish on the run, but I had the mental confidence that I'll make it.

This confidence and my training was tested in the final 6 days before the race. I caught a really nasty cold on the Monday before the race and it totally knocked me out for the first three days. I could barely stay awake or sleep properly and I was heading out for vacation soon after the race so I didn't want to completely ditch working. I took a day off work and worked from home for another. But working out was out of question. Mentally, I was really bummed because I knew how hard I had trained and I was restless about not being able to do any of the workouts. I thought of doing a swim/run on the Friday once I felt I could breathe but Coach just advised to rest and I remembered how it had felt to just taking it easy before the Ragnar relay, and I decided to not push it at all.

Mental training is truly as important as the physical training- I knew my race may not be as strong, but I had to mentally feel strong so that I can not psych myself out of even participating or finishing.

Race day - 1
The day before the race, all seemed pretty calm. There was nothing more I could do except for setting up for the next day. The nice thing about Santa Cruz is that you don't need to stay overnight, which cuts down on tons of planning. By now I had a routine before my races so I wasn't very stressed about the race morning. I also take a lot of comfort in details and planning and lists, so I had a list of the exact order of things I was going to do on the race morning, including brushing and wearing that race belt. I had laid out all my stuff the previous night and James had helped with checking on the bike (as he has throughout the season, thanks!). I tried sleeping but I couldn't get much sleep- I was half expecting that to happen so come race morning, I took that in my stride as well. I had segregated things by activity (swim+ bike+run+T1+T2)- since we had done the exact same thing for mock tri, I felt things were under control.

Race day
I woke up, had water and a banana + half a bar, got ready and that was it. My cold was well under control but I had packed extra tissues in the flip belt that I wear for my bike and run. We headed out early to Santa Cruz, got my bike in the transition. It was awesome to see familiar faces, not just my fellow racers, but also other Team Asha folks who were volunteering! Surya and Vineeta were in the body marking section, Surya drew a heart next to my race number and that totally cracked me up. I was in great spirits that day because I felt I had been kept on this leash for the past 6 days and I could finally go bonkers!

We walked down to the swim start area, it was cold! Due to the fog, the start had been delayed. We left our slippers next to the platform so that we have access to it as soon as we get off the sand. We went in and did a quick warm up but as the delay increased to 30 minutes, it meant that we had to do multiple warm up runs into the water. My nose kept getting blocked everytime I came out of the ocean, but I reminded myself of how much I love the water and was just thrilled to have the chance to be there. Karthik and Surekha were volunteering at the swim start and a lot of other folks had come to cheer for us! The swim was shortened (I was mildly bummed!) but finally it was time to start.

With full confidence, Soujanya, Gauri and I trotted to the front of the line and got amazing pictures. Couple of minutes before the start, we realized, "who are we kidding?" and stepped a bit to the side to avoid being trampled over. As soon as the race started, we all rushed into the cold waters. I watched this wave come towards us, and with 'extreme grace and expertise', I watched it knock me down. I sat with my bum on the beach with water coming up to my neck for half a minute, before Souj ran up behind me and asked if I was okay. I realized my Garmin was still tracking (yes, crazy motivation) and took off after having a good laugh at my own expense.

I loved the swim. I swam next to Gauri for a bit and then drifted behind another swimmer. It was a short swim but I loved every minute of it. At the end, I spotted Coach Char. I waved to him and made my way out the water. My nose was blocked at this point and I also realized that my slippers were extremely uncomfortable to run in (Note to self: get cheap slippers next time, but more expensive than the ones I grabbed this time!). Also, the ground had become slippery. In the middle of all of this, I realized this is probably one of the last races where I don't have to worry about time. I could crazily push myself or, I could just take it easy and listen to my body. And so I did. There was a cameraman once we exited the swimming area. I think I was walking so slow that he did a complete photoshoot with no hazy shots since he had all the time in the world to focus (yes, I have almost 50 good pictures from this race, in the past I've had max one!). I also saw Sumit on the way to T1 and decided to speed up the jog to the transition. My fingers and toes don't deal super well with the cold (I grew up in a city which actually had a winter season, and I was used to my fingers swelling every year) so I patiently changed into my running shoes and wore my running jersey over my tri top. Since I had trained wearing a flip belt so I didn't want to attempt anything new on race day. Having a flip belt meant that I really didn't need a bike jersey's pockets, so I saved time and just wore the full sleeved running jersey. I don't have cleats yet, so after this, T2 would need barely anything. I put on my race belt, got some water and one chew and was off with Swaaagger (my bike). I had taken 8:56 for the 420 yd swim and spent around ten mins running up to the transition + heading out.

The biking portion was fun barring the occasional stops I had to make every 2 miles to clear my nose. The ocean had been super cold but thankfully, except for the nose block, I felt totally at ease in the rest of my body. I saw lots of Team Asha folks and we would call out to each other ('Top gear!')- this was a great atmosphere! I am not yet super comfortable with picking up my bottle while riding the bike so I stopped and make sure I was staying hydrated. At one point where I had to stop yet again to make sure I could breathe, I heard a familiar voice asking me if I was okay- it was Nitya! I was great to see her and I felt I could pull through the last loop without stopping, and I did! Since most of the course was flat so there wasn't as much of a rush to change gears as we did on hills during our training rides, but I handled the bike decently enough. I took around 50 mins for 12.7 miles.

I got back to T2 in still good spirits. I had hoped to finish the entire race in under 2 hours. While my bike time was longer than I had expected with all the stops, because the swim had been shortened, we would have ended up in under 2 hours. I flipped my race belt to be in the front, swapped out my helmet for the cap, and took off.

The run was slow and unfortunately for me, I did it at my usual pace (>11:15) than the pace I had tried to train for (~10:30). Again, at that point I felt I could choose to be miserable about how fast I could go or I could just let this one be. I saw James and Stan at the start, Stan was taking pictures and encouraging me to not stop. Stan had been a huge support in the training runs at Gull Park and seeing him, I tried to push myself to not walk, just the way I had did when Stan had joined us in the training runs. The views were gorgeous! I also saw Coach Char at the end shouting words of wisdom, I responded by saying 'Chop Chop' and headed back to the transition area (the finish line was next to it). I completed the 5k in 35 mins (~11:16 pace).

I was so excited at the finish line! Apart from my awesome tri cohort (Souj, Deepak, Gauri, Ashish, Vividh, Milind, Hardeep, Ganesh, Satya, Hemal..Suryakant, Neha, Rochan came in later with the Olympic!), I think I saw Sumit, Surekha, Vinod, Karthik, Surya, Yuvraj (Nitya, Vineeta and Monali were also volunteering; Akila, Pramoda, Chakri and Ranjit, Prasad had dispensed their words of wisdom on earlier sessions and the mock tri :)) and some of my other friends, equally excited. Could I have gone faster? For sure! But I had a lot of fun, and I was technically at 1:50, so under two hours (one way or another!).

Next: 
[Part V of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] What I learned and what worked (or not)

[Part III of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] June-July 2018: almost there

[Forked from the entire race report for ease of reading]

Previous: [Part II of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] March-May 2018: the actual training begins

June 2018 (Biking + HIIT + OWS + Swimming + Running):

I was back from my backpacking trip, which was also my short break between switching teams at work. I was signed up to run the Ragnar Relay in Pacific Northwest, a 200ish mile race with a 12 person team. This one requires every runner to run three legs and stay in a van for the rest of the duration (~30-36 hours). While training for my triathlon was a big goal, training to run at a pace that didn't disqualify my team at Ragnar was an equally important one to me at this time. Because of my triathlon + HIIT schedule, I was only able to make it to one the track sessions. Given the distances I had to run during the relay (the longest one was 9 miles), I had to run a total of 18.3 miles. I decided that desperate times called for desperate measures and running needed to make its way back into the schedule. Given that I had recently started with a new team and didn't have the time to add more training hours in the morning or reasonable evening time, it meant a return to the treadmill.

I started with a 4 mile run on the treadmill during my first week back and it was around 10:30 pace which is fast given my normal pace (I'm painfully aware of how that is still considered slow!). It felt good but I knew that I needed a lot more practice. I resumed Open water swim + Bike sessions with Team Asha, which felt awesome! Our brick had gone up to 4 miles but was thankfully on a track, which is my favorite (I love the tracks so much that the back story deserves a post of its own :D).

Prasad gave me some much needed feedback during one of the open water swims about how I was almost coming out of the water completely just to take a breath. Because of other stuff, I hadn't been doing as many pool swims and it was clearly showing. I resolved to make that a priority again.

I was still having trouble changing gears and going faster on the bike. I was frustrated because I would be at the end of the pack and even though I wasn't tired, but my bike won't go any faster. I was also nearing the time to get a bike tune up so I took in my bike to SB around mid-June. Basically I found out that my rear derailleur had somehow split into two and one half had fallen off! The guy at the bike counter said he had never seen anything like this, especially because I was not in any accident and the bike hadn't seen any damage. I asked him if I could keep the derailleur as a souvenir (he asked me to make a necklace of it!). After they fixed that, changing gears became so much easier! It wasn't that I raced to the front of the pack and lived happily ever after, but it was a huge upgrade in terms of amount of effort dispensed. Moral of the story, when in doubt, blame something else! :D

Over the month, I fit in shorter runs at my target pace (~10:30). I also talked with Soujanya and Deepak about Spin sessions and realized that my bike training could be much better if I made it to the spin sessions so I cautiously doubled up on the same day or another day to ensure that I made it to Spin session on Thursday evenings. Ironically, a bigger challenge was getting to Baylands park on Thursday evenings at 6:30 from my new campus- the traffic was brutal! I also had to do some crazy prep the previous days to make sure that I had enough change of clothes for days of two workouts (and of course, enough clean clothes). 

July 2018 (Biking + HIIT + OWS + Swimming + Ragnar Relay):

We had our first 30 mile bike ride on July 1 and it marked an important milestone- I got my first flat in the middle of a bike ride, and that too at mile 16. We did a turnaround at mile 15 so this ensured that I had no option but to fix this (even if I wanted to call for help, it would have been futile, FIFA world cup ensured that all my friends would curse me to no end!). Thankfully Deepak and Soujanya were right behind me and patiently waited as I started putting my theory lessons (thanks, James!) into practice. Barring the point where the chain had to be taken off (it was the rear tyre), both Deepak and Souj let me work on my own and change the flat. It was both super encouraging on their part to be so patient! 

My swim lessons were continuing on the side but I was also becoming aware of how much I had to fix- your hand needs to slice through at a certain angle, your core needs to be engaged, your leg muscles need to be engaged in a certain way- it all made me realize how much thought and training needs to go into making the body one aerodynamic unit.

Ragnar relay was on July 13-14 and I got in couple of 4-6 mile runs in the week before that. We flew out to Seattle couple of days before the race and I only walked on those days. I was also experimenting with taking it easy before a race to see if it actually helped (fortunately or unfortunately, this proved to be super helpful for my triathlon). I'll add a separate post on Ragnar, but overall I was happy with the pace and the fact that I finished without injury! This also indicated to me that I may not be the fastest in the run position for triathlon, but I'll be able to pull through for the sprint atleast. Because the second and third Ragnar segments are done without as much of rest and break, it felt good to know that mentally I was prepared to push through.

Back in California, I felt ready to go back to something that would make my commute much easier.. back to back workouts! I reasoned that I took my bike with me to my office early in the morning and then left around 4:30 to make it to the second campus where I could do HIIT, then it was a short 7 minute drive to Baylands at 6pm. For others, these things were probably not a big deal- but I had moved to California last year and only started driving my own car for commute around a year ago so driving anywhere is still a big deal.

The weekend after Ragnar was the Donner lake swim. It was our first 'race' as a group and it was awesome! I started slow as we had been told over and over, because of the altitude. It was a half mile swim and the water was super clear. You could see the sun rays filtering through, as you could sometimes see the kelp (the kind that drags down the protagonists in horror movies!). I loved the swim- my goggles kept leaking but I tried not to let that work me up. There were clearly not enough people at the race- I came second in my age group. We all joked about it and hijacked the podium, but it was really good to see how far I had progressed in the swim! The same weekend we also did our longest bike ride of the season, 32.3 miles - it was a crazy weekend!

At this point, it won't be a stretch to say that I was loving the routine:

Sundays: Bike ride + brick run, Monday: Swim/rest, Tuesday: HIIT, Wednesday: Swim/rest, Thursday: HIIT+Spin, Friday: Swim, Saturday: Open water swim.

That weekend we were going to do a mock tri. I was checking my calendar for the week after that 32 mile bike ride and I realized that I didn't have morning meetings on Wednesday that day. I was so much of an enthu cutlet that time that I felt that I should try out a mock tri in the gym+pool. I was completely exhausted by the end of it and had to substitute a Spin for a stationary bike (since I couldn't find a normal bike in the gym!) but was totally worth it - I felt ready!

July 28 was IM 70.3 in Santa Rosa- it was both fun and inspiring to watch our team members, alumni, coords and Coach doing such an awesome job! We also saw the pro athletes and age group leads roll out, was very surreal. I also saw couple other Indian women racing, I am always extra inspired to see other Indian women race since I don't see too many, so this was super exciting as well!

August was beckoning- Now we were down to the final 11 days before the race!

Next: 
[Part IV of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] 11 days of August, and the race day!

[Part II of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] March-May 2018: the actual training begins

[Forked from the entire race report for ease of reading]
Previous: [Part I of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] Prologue: the back story

March 2018 (Swimming + HIIT):

I thought I'll get a headstart and kick off the swimming part of the training, what followed was humbling and a good indicator of things to come.

Swimming:
I had learnt to swim as a kid,  I couldn't dive or jump in, but I remember being okay swimming to the deep end and back to the shallow. I grew up in a landlocked city so there are no ocean or even bay/lake/river swims in my life. I had taken refresher courses around 5 years ago. In my mind, I was in decent shape. In reality, it had been 5 years since I had even stepped into a pool!
I set up a lesson with a coach and in the first few minutes, she had asked me to float, do a lap and something else which I thought was very simple, and yet, I couldn't do a single thing. She asked me why I was doing the lessons and I told her I wanted to do a triathlon. Her advice: sign up for more lessons..

It was a rude awakening, but what I remember the most from that day is how good it felt to be in the water, something I do not remember from the past. Till this day, swimming remains my favorite part of the triathlon, I have no idea why or what led to this, but I'm not complaining. It took me couple of lessons to jog my memory but then it took us many lessons to correct my form. For around couple of months, I only swam during lessons and soon it was evident that it was not helping with the endurance at all. I still remember the day I went for a swim without a lesson on my calendar, I felt so accomplished! I had some breathing issues as a kid and in general, I have a tendency to run out of breath. Being aware of this, I had to be patient as I would stop mid lap or not be able to do as much as I would have liked to push. What really helped (I think) was the fact that I had started HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) which is a mix of strength training and cardio a few months ago. With a combination of more hours in the pool, deliberate fixing of form and HIIT, I started to feel a lot more comfortable going for longer distances without pausing as much. Around this time, the main triathlon training had also kicked off, which helped me immensely!

HIIT:
I won't go into as much detail here, but I started HIIT in September 2017. The particular version I do, is structured as a 10-12 week course where you meet twice a week for one hour. In that hour, you alternate between 45-50 seconds of strength training and 45-50 seconds of cardio (the remaining 10 seconds in between are for rest/switching). In the first week, I had requested the trainer for a weight less than 7 lbs, and he laughed and said no. Later he explained that he could hand me the 7, but if I got used to the 7 when I could do more, it will be painful for me when they move to some equipment like kettlebells where there is no 7 lb (maybe they just didn't have it). I bought the argument. By the time our triathlon training started, I had been doing HIIT school for 2 semesters and had signed up for the third one.

April 2018 (biking + running + HIIT):

If I had to remember one significant event in April, that will be the day I bought my bike! It was a day before the first Team Asha ride and I was so excited! I had never owned a road bike before. I walked into Sports basement and tried out the carbon bike- I felt 'one with the bike'..until I saw the price. Then I tried something which was aluminum frame but also not the best parts, I felt all the roads around sports basement in my bum, my head and my heart. Finally, I tried the Cannondale Synapse 105, with disc brakes. It felt like a good in between. I always have a tough time making decisions but thankfully, Sports basement didn't have as many options that day for my height so this white beauty it was! I later named her Swaagger (yes, with all the extra emphasis). Since April, Swaagger has gotten better treatment than almost any human in my life. She only leaves the apartment for training rides or spin sessions and chills out on her bike rack at home otherwise.

Spin sessions started end of April, I dutifully bought off the trainer and attended the first session. It was great but since it clashed with my HIIT days, it would be a choice I would have to make over the next few weeks. That day (April 26), I did HIIT and then Spin and then a short brick run. Needless to say, my system wasn't used to this level of exercise so I was dead tired the next day. Coach advised me to not double up if it didn't feel right. I paid heed and wouldn't come back to doing this again until June.

We had our swim test for the Open Water Swims on April 22. I was so excited! While deciding which lane to go in, I remember Prasad asking me if I'm comfortable with the leftmost lane, which was 7 feet. I told him that I hadn't practised in that, but I'm game to find out what happens when I do. I went ahead and enjoyed the couple of laps that I did that day. This attitude was my approach to swimming throughout. I wasn't the fastest in any of the three disciplines, but when I was in the water, I was game to try out something new and stretch. This was really useful as a confidence booster (since it wasn't really tied to my ability to swim either :))

May 2018 (Biking + HIIT + OWS + Swimming):

I was one of the slowest riders in the bike rides every Sunday. It was true that I was still finishing all the rides and practising on a stationery bike twice a week and attending Spin once in two weeks, but I remember being frustrated after those Sundays wondering what it would take to go faster. In early May, in one of the rides I was pretty much on my own and one of the few people who didn't get lost. I may not be the fastest but I was definitely not underprepared. This gave me some consolation.

The weekend of May 19-20 was one of the most happening ones! I was performing with my improv group and trying out my first stand up comedy piece on Sunday. We were going for our first Open Water Swim on the same Saturday. My stomach was a ball of nerves the entire week! The OWS was super fun, as was my show. Around the same time, I had decided to switch teams at work. This would have meant a steep ramp-up for the next few months and will become another factor that I'll have to balance my training with.

To be honest, I imagined that I would freak out in any kind of open water. But then when I put my face in the slimy waters of Gull Park (lake?), I couldn't see a thing. At this point, it didn't matter if I was 5 ft deep or 30 or more. Those slimy waters have gone a long way in ensuring that nobody realizes how much in the deep end they truly are..

Meanwhile, I was steadily practicing in the pool and completed my first 1000m in pool swim. I also took Karthik's advice of deciding beforehand how many laps I wanted to do and that made it a little easier to both push and track. I also finished third semester of HIIT school and the measurements gave me the highest fat percentage drop so far. These checkpoints were a great confidence booster! May wrapped up with a backpacking trip to the Lost coast which meant missed training for a weekend but it was also a checkpoint as I carried a heavier than usual backpack but felt stronger and fitter than ever before.

Next: 
[Part III of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] Jun-July 2018: almost there

[Part I of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] Prologue: the back story

[Forked from the entire race report for ease of reading]

The actual triathlon training started in April 2018, but in reality the idea was sown in December 2017 (no actually it all started in 2012 when I ran my first race, but that is a post for another day).

I have always loved the idea of having a goal, and having a stretch goal for which I have no preparation whatsoever, makes me feel in touch with my half Punjabi nature (I leap before I look). In December last year, I realized that I have always wanted to push myself to my physical limits and see how far I got. I don't have significant weight issues (though losing a few pounds is always welcome) and I don't have ambitions of becoming a pro sportsperson either. But for the past 5 years since I ran my first long distance race, I would train and run for 3-4 months, and then I would carb-load for the next 4-5, until it was time for my next racing goal. This trend worked well as I finished my graduate school, moved to NYC, switched jobs, until I moved to California in March 2017. Now, I love south bay, but it is also no NYC. I no longer had the same busy schedule of being at work for part of the day and being out on the streets for the rest during the week and all of it on the weekends. I started to feel a little restless. I love my research area, so I completely pushed myself at work!

In June 2017, I auditioned and joined an amazing theatre group for Improv (again a post for another day), but my urge to push myself physically stayed. In July 2017, I ran the SF half marathon (the second half) and finished, which has always been my goal. However, I didn't train as much as I had in the past and again, the pace was nothing to be proud of.

I have always been fascinated with the idea of a triathlon, especially the fact that it pushes you to not one, but atleast three different body limits. Before I had moved to California, I used to visit often. I have close friends here, some of whom I have known since undergrad, Neha is one such awesome friend. She and Sumit have been involved with Team Asha and have been running/biking/triathlon-ing (?) with them for several years. I had so far only been on the contributing via money side of that effort, but whenever I discussed it with both Neha and Sumit, they were both super encouraging and very much gung-ho about it- this was a huge impetus! When Neha forwarded the announcement for Asha Triathlon program for 2018 on December 5, my mind was already set. By December 6, I had submitted my 'application.'

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I talk about all of these since each one of these elements will play an important part in my actual training and mindset throughout.

December is the time of the year when I really think about life etc more deeply (not that I don't do it at other times!). But I realized that precious time is ticking by, and if I don't set myself down the road of pushing myself physically now, then it'll unnecessarily become harder for me, given my tendency. Around the same time, I signed up for another race, where I totally struggled to run 15k. Of course, the medal and the hot chocolate on the course made it worth it, but at times like this, I have to ask, is this all I have?

Next: [Part II of Race journal: Tri Santa Cruz, August 2018] March-May 2018: the actual training begins