Triathamom 2012

I know it was forever ago but I wanted to document how my triathlon went. The Triathmom was on August 18th. I had not wanted to be pregnant for the triathlon but things didn't go as planned as I was 9 weeks pregnant (not complaining that I was pregnant however). This just made things way more difficult. I had been so sick the month leading up the triathlon that I had not been able to do any training. I am not kidding, I had done NOTHING!!!! I asked my doctor if it was okay that I still do the race and he was fine with it as long as I took it slow. I was really sick the two days before the race. I couldn't eat anything so on top of not feeling well I was really weak. I probably shouldn't have done the race but it was something that I really wanted to accomplish. I was doing the race with my friends Nikki, Codie, and Keelee. Brad's cousin Tashina was also doing the race but she was doing it with some other people as well. She was actually the one that convinced me to sign up in the first place then I did some recruiting of my own. We went the night before and got our packets, got our numbers stamped on, our timing chips, and any last minute details for the race. 

We woke up bright and early and were to the Kearns Rec Center by about 6:00 am. I'm not a morning person to begin with so having to wake up that early as well as be exhausted and nauseous from being pregnant was an adventure. We got our stuff set up in the transition area and just waited for the race to begin. The order was swim (300 m), bike (12 mile), run (5k). The swimming was the part I was most nervous for. Which is completely silly considering I'm a swimmer. But because of this I hadn't really focused on training my swimming at all. But it turns out the swimming was the easiest part. My official overall time was 2:15:37. My swim took 11:49. People did not sign up correctly as to their level of swimming. So I got stuck behind really slow people. I literally was swimming with my head above water just doing a breaststroke kick. It was very frustrating! 

 

After the swim I ran to the transition area and got ready for the bike ride. I took my time in the transition area. I know this really frustrated my dad but I was not feeling up to rushing. The bike ride was probably the worst part of the race. I literally thought I was going to die. My time for this leg was 1:04:51. Being hunched over was killing my stomach and made me feel even more sick. To make matters worse the bike route went right past my house. Both times I really just wanted to ride home and crawl into bed. I had never experienced a bike ride this awful in my life. I had done bike rides way longer than this and not even been out of breath. But with being pregnant and weak from being so sick I had no energy or strength. They put your age on your calf so you could see how old everyone is. Just imagine how I felt when a 69 year old lady passed me. Highlight of the day for sure!!! To make matters worse my chain fell off during the ride. I am so lucky I didn't crash because my feet were clipped into the pedals. I really lucked out. I had to hike my bike up a hill and luckily there was a support guy who was able to get my chain unjammed and put back on. It scratched my bike up really good because it somehow got way jammed in there. I couldn't have been happier when I was finished with the ride.

 Last was the 5K. I was looking forward to this because I knew I could just walk this if I needed. And believe me at this point I needed to walk. My stomach was so crampy. It was really hurting. It wasn't like a side ache cramp either. It was because of the baby and things going on with that. I was actually really nervous that I done something serious. Thankfully Keelee was sweet and just stayed with me the entire 5K. I kept trying to run but it hurt way to bad. I was too scared to push myself. If I hadn't of been pregnant it would have been a completely different story. The 5K took me 54:59. Ridiculous!!!! But I really didn't care. As long as I finished I was happy. I was so excited when I came to the finish line. Cooper was there so I picked him up and carried him across with me. It was a big accomplishment for me.

 

  

 

I had so many people there routing me on. Of course everyone else had already finished so they were all there, my parents, Aspen, grandma and grandpa, Brad and Cooper. It felt good having so many people there just for me. They had some bagels and fruit at the end which was amazing. I was starving and desperately needed food at this point. We hung around for a little after the race and then headed home. I ate some lunch and laid down for a nap. I was exhausted. My stomach was crampy for the entire rest of the day. I was really nervous. Luckily the next day I woke up and the cramping had stopped. My body wasn't even achy or sore or anything. I was so glad that I accomplished my first triathlon. I was even more proud considering being pregnant and super sick. I will never do something like this again pregnant that is for sure. I haven't decided yet if I will do it again next year. Baby girl will be about 5 months old. But I didn't work out at all when I nursed with Cooper so we will have to see how things go with this baby.

 Cooper wore his big brother shirt to announce to my Grandma and Grandpa the news

 

  They had a carnival for the kids during the race....He only let them paint half of his face.

  My #1 fan

 

 My Grandma and Grandpa

 My sister Aspen

 My little family

 Me and the Hubby

 My Parents

  The whole gang

 My dad riding my bike back to the car....what a sight to see :)

 Cooper helping Nikki push Marley

Coop and His Bike

So Cooper got his bike for Christmas from my parents. It is one of the balancing ones without petals. This is supposed to help them learn balance earlier than when using training wheels. They are amazing! It has been crazy to see him go from not being able to touch the ground to being able to walk the bike around by himself in just 6 months. It is crazy how fast they really grow. We have been letting Cooper ride his bike more now that it's summer. He still hasn't gotten the hang of it completely but he is catching on. He likes you to push him more than he wants to do it on his own. But the more he does it the more comfortable he gets. He will be riding around in no time!!!

Bike and Bike Trailer

So when I decided to do the Triathamom I had one big hold up. I didn't own a bike! So I thought long and hard about if it would be worth doing because I would need to buy a bike and a bike trailer. Because lets be honest....if I was going to be riding my bike I would most likely have to do it with Cooper. So Brad gave me the go and encouraged me so I started looking for a bike and bike trailer. Okay well I started looking for a bike trailer and I put my dad in charge of finding me a bike! My dad is very into biking and has done it my entire life. So he was the perfect person to get the job. He was quite estatic when I called him and told him. I don't think it was two days until he had found me my bike. I got a Fuji 2.0 Absolute. It is a hybrid. So I can use it for not only road biking but as a mountain bike as well. I felt it was the best decision since I will be using it mostly for rides with Cooper and I did want to limit myself on what I could do. I ended up getting it from Performance Bicycle. I met my dad there one day with Cooper and came home with my bike. I was soooo excited! My next big decision was the bike trailer. I researched and shopped around and was having the hardest time deciding. I could go a cheaper route and maybe not get something so great or go really expensive and know I was getting something good and something that could convert into a double stroller. After thinking long and hard and doing all the research I decided on the Burley D'Lite. It was one of the most expensive but it had everything we were looking for! I am 100% satisfied with my decision. I absolutely LOVE my trailer. I love all the features and accessory options, how comfortable it is for Cooper, but one big plus is that I could get it in GREEN. If you know me I am obsessed with the color green! If there is an option for anything I always choose green. But most importantly Cooper loves it!

Biking is not a cheap sport to get into to. You need the bike, bike trailer, back rack for the car, helmets, bike pump (gift from my dad), bike tools, bike tubes, and water bottles just to start. I bought my helmet when I got my bike but I got Cooper's at the law firm Robert J. Debry. They have this amazing thing they do. They feel helmet safety is so important they sell children's helmets for $5 and adult helmets for $10. But I wasn't the only one without a bike. Brad didn't have one either. Luckily my dad has like 8 bikes so was kind enough to let Brad borrow one of his cycle cross bikes and helmet. My dad has been trying to get Brad to ride for years. Little did Brad know how much he would love it. Brad is now the one asking to go on bike rides and he even takes Cooper out by himself when I'm not home. This melts my heart by the way! With Brad so into it we decided we need to invest in a few more essentials. Padded bike shorts and gloves. These are a must if you are going to be riding very often. Sore biker butt isn't pleasant. So the other day we went out and bought shorts and gloves for Brad. Best purchases! My awesome friend Nikki gave me gloves for my birthday. We did a 20 miler this past weekend and riding with the shorts and gloves made it so much more pleasant! Our next investment is clip in pedals and shoes. But we will wait a bit for those. Also we are going to have to look into getting Brad his own bike. He is going to need one with all the riding we are going to be doing! :)

Riding in Tyson's trailer....we rode to the park and he just wanted to play in the trailer.
This is when I knew he needed one of his own!

LOVES the helmets.....even if it is mine!

Future biker....wearing Papa's bike shorts that I had to fix

Little stroll around our neighborhood....no dad I don't normally ride with flip flops!

Our set up in the garage.....Cooper's bike had to be with ours!

Coop's helmet.....can't believe they were only $5

20 miler on the Legacy trail

My triathlon is going to be a breeze after pulling Cooper around. It is noticeably way more difficult pulling a bike trailer! We bought an extra hitch for Brad's bike so we can easily switch the trailer between our bikes during long rides. I can honestly say that family bike rides are one of the funnest things we have ever done as a family!

Triathamom

Well I made a huge decision recently....I registered to do a triathlon on August 18th. It isn't just any triathlon however. It is the TRIATHAMOM!!! It is a fully supported and non-competitive triathalon for women. I am super excited! It is going to be a 300 yard swim, 12 mile bike ride, and a 5k run. Brad's cousin told me about it when we were in Indiana. At first I totally wrote it off by thinking there is NO WAY I could do a triathlon. I am terrified enough to run just a 5K because I am NOT a runner. But the more I got thinking about it the more I wanted to do it. The swimming will be no issue since I grew up being on swim teams. The biking shouldn't be an issue since I grew up riding bikes.....but probably haven't ridden a bike in 7 years??? Oh and I don't even own a bike! But then I realized I can totally do this! I have plenty of time to train and this will be fun. I wanted some big challenge to accomplish before I get pregnant again. So I jumped in and signed up so there is no turning back. I have convinced a couple of my neighbors to do it with me as well as Brad's cousin that is going to do it. It should be fun! I can't wait to begin training. Stay tuned for updates on how it is going!