Tri Training

The day is drawing near....
We are now in the single digits....
My first triathlon is this Saturday and I am super nervous!

My dedication to training hasn't been quite as hard-core as I had planned and, compared to my initial run-through, I haven't whittled off as much time as I imagined I would.

That may be because I feel like this in the water:
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I haven't spent nearly enough time in the water this past month. I assumed that since I already new how to swim free-style that I wouldn't need that much training...but boy was I wrong. I feel no where faster now than when I tested my skills over a month ago!

And, as slow as I'm going, I might as well be biking through mud:
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This is one of the hardest parts for me. I can't seem to find a balance between pushing myself and saving my legs for the run. I find that when I push myself hard my legs immediately cramp up during the run.

It doesn't help that I have elephant legs when I'm running
(source)
Like I said with the biking, my legs immediately start to cramp up when I get off the bike! It takes me 5 minutes to get warmed up for the run, but 5 minutes is way too long for a little 2 mile leg. Cardio-wise I could run at a really fast pace, but that dang bike kills my legs!

I now only have two goals going into this race. 1) Finish. 2) Don't finish last.

Not too high of expectations, huh? I'm just going to try to enjoy the race and do the best I can. And the best thing about this being my first triathlon? I will definitely PR, no matter how slow I go!

Do you sometimes set expectations too high for yourself? Are you flexible with your goals?