Tried the TRI ....

I have to admit, Triathlons are for the crazy people...
We hear about triathlons, ironman races, etc... for those who may not be aware of it, a triathlon is a mix of 3 sports - Starts with Swimming, Then ride a Bicycle and finally Run...

There are various distances and here is a glimpse of it:

So now, to my story!

Last few years, Ironman has been a trending topic in the running fraternity, thanks to Milind Soman inspiring millions.

I wondered, should I even attempt this sport (not the Ironman, but the easiest of them all - the sprint or super sprint distance?).. and there I decided to attempt a triathlon in future.

This Year, in Feb, I heard a new term - the Ultraman! It is double the Ironman distance, and I was shocked to see some of the athletes from India not just attempting it, but doing really well... that was the single most inspiring news. So I started reading and researching about the sport.


Swimming - till 1st May, 2017, the maximum i could swim was about 20-25meters non-stop.
Cycling - the max i had done till March 2017 was 39km...
Running - have done about 14 half marathons (21.1km)..


Started with cycling and did an adventurous 200km ride on 25th-26th March, 2017.. you can read more here: 200 km Brevet



In May, the swimming pool at Ulsoor was launched and was managed by Nisha Millet Academy  .. so I thought lets try to learn there. I Joined a month of Lap swimming followed by a 15 day intermediate course which included learning all strokes, better technique and a lot of drills. This was the best investment in a long time!!!!!

In my case, if there is a fixed target - with timelines, I get self-motivated to do it. Personally, Swimming has always been a scary activity, but to be a triathlete, it has to be an integral part of your lifestyle... and so, reminding myself everyday that this is a need, motivated me to learn this sport.. I am still bad at it, probably slower than 95% of humans who know swimming, but, I can manage to be in the pool for a couple of hours now!

Next up, I read about the Hyderabad Triathlon, happening on 8th October... I had 4 months to train and attempt this. So, the journey started. Registered for the Olympic Triathlon: 1.5km Swimming, 40km Cycling and 10km Running.

Also, most of the triathlons happen in open waters (Lake, Sea, Ocean), but this one was a Swimming Pool based, so was enough to convince myself.

The organizers reached out to me for an article on their blog, and that added a lot of energy and enthusiasm in my training sessions. Here is the link: Blog by Hyd Triathlon

Some help from Online training programs, free apps, reading material and a lot of investment on gear (bicycle, garmin fenix, etc) and I was materialistically equipped.

The aim was to be physically, mentally and physiologically equipped.

The next phase was planning 4 months of training that worked as a buildup to Hyderabad Triathlon.
Events like 100km cycling ride with bumsonthesaddle, a few 10K runs in Bangalore, Half marathons at Airtel Hyderabad  & TRORT 009,  the BBCH Crit cycling race, etc were all part of the 15 week calendar. And swimming 4 days a week for an hour, with drills that focused on technique & endurance was nonnegotiable!

My first Triathlon was at FIT I AM TAD - 300m swim, 20km cycle and 7.5km run.. a modest effort and I saw how the sport was. I took about 2 hrs 15 mins to complete and was thrilled with my performance, though I was ranked 17th among 26 participants.

Training Plans:
Triathlon trainings are complex. In my case, a typical week had 4-5 days of workouts and only 1 sport got high intensity training workout every week. So, weekends had Either a long ride or a long run. Tempo workout for Cycling one week means no tempo running that week.
Some of the online tools and plans helped me draft a plan that wasn't too optimistic, and didn't have too many breaks too.
Diet was normal - eat anything and everything but in smaller quantities, just added more protein & fibre in the diet, no alcohol for 4 months, and Biryani just once a month.

Challenges:
Time management is a big challenge with multi sport training. You have to train for all three every week, and also bridge the gap the your weakest sport.

Dedicating time to swimming, esp if its a fixed time slot like say 7-8am means you have to adjust the runs and rides accordingly.
There are work pressures too, so late nights lead to missed workouts.
Diet - Being a foodie as well as a cook, it was very difficult to control the urge to eat some tasty junk food.
But the last few months have been a little more disciplined with quantity control.

Strength Training - for those who hate the gym! Its either set up a home gym or join some training group. A home gym with basic equipment seemed to be the only possible option.

To add to the obstacles, got Injured in September. A minor one on my right knee, though, Compressed Meniscus. And it needed few sessions of TENS & Icing, with a week of complete rest. In the peak phase of training, rest means an irritated mind. 

Retail therapy worked best in such cases.

Hence, bought some tools for recovery and improvement of flexibility, so that the body is better equipped to take the stress.

Back to almost normal, I had 2 weeks to prepare, and I went on with things as planned. With a 10K run, a 40K ride and a 1.2km swim a week before the event (all on different days) and a few brick sessions (mix of run+bike or swim+ bike or swim + run) there was a lot of positive energy and optimism.

2 days before the event, we drove to Hyderabad from Bangalore, and carried my bicycle too. Enroute, visited Lepakshi Temple. At Hyderabad, got my bike serviced at the Ciclo Cafe, with some upgrades to the bike and made it ready for the big day. ABC - Air, Brake, Chain - the most important checks, done!

Gear Check, Hydration Check, Pre-race Hyderabadi Paradise Biryani - Check!!!

 

Bib Collection Day was good, and wr all got a chance to met Amit Samarth, an inspiring athlete, who conquered the RAAM (Race Across America) a 4900+km ride in 12 days.... He is the first Indian to complete the race in first attempt. Yes, 4900kms in 12 days with unimaginable elevation, weather and headwinds.

Got a few tips from him and was charged up for the next day.

The Race Day: 8th October 2017. Reporting time: 640am. Start time for me: 720am
Venue: Gachibowli Stadium, Hyderabad.
Thanks to Biryani, I could sleep for 7 hours pre event.

Got the bike in transition area, with the bag full of items needed for the cycling and running phase. As I had reached early, was loafing around the spectator zone to take a glimpse of the pool. The sight of the initial set of participants giving it their all was a great motivator.

1. Swimming was a challenge for me: 30 laps of the 50m pool with 3 other participants in the same lane. My best distance till date - 1250mtrs!!!

We had to assemble and wait for our turn as it was as per bib  numbers. As soon as one participant finishes his/her swim, we would get the lane allocated to out bib and go to the volunteer, give the swimming slip and dive... In my case, as another participant was wearing a similar colour cap, I was asked to change it to some other that they had kept; so I exchanged my grey one with a black. There were 3 other swimmers already, some super quick and some at my pace all completing their laps and next ones diving in as the lanes got free. My initial 200mtrs were very good. Then came the troubles. First, there was a smartass who didn't agree to go in a clockwise loop & stayed on the right side of the lane throughout stating he is faster than the 3 others. Got kicked once in my 9th lap by a gentleman (who was smiling and we wished each other good luck at the waiting zone) who was probably swimming his entire 30 with eyes closed - as he saw nothing and noone, then I got pushed down deep into the pool- where that idiot just went over me without even acknowledging that it was his mistake, then at one poiby I  went out of breath at 1300mtrs - so took a breather + drank some water and finally completed the 30 laps in about 1 hour and 24 mins.
The funniest part was when a photographer came to the lane and started clicking pics. In all enthusiasm - I tried to show off my technique and ended up being breathless. Lesson learnt, always focus on the activity and IGNORE the cameras.

As soon as your 30 laps are done, you come out, cross the timing map and move to the changing room and later to the bike.

Transition 1 (swim ends, bike starts) - took 7-8 mins to get ready for the bike ride, had a bar one, a few sips of enerzal, a couple of almonds and a chikki. and started the ride.

2. Bike / Ride: Not an easy route, with about 340mtrs elevation in 40kms lots of rolling hills. The start was good, and slowly got into the rhythm as the stiffness of swimming was slowly going away. Initial 10 mins were about easy gears and high cadence. After the 3rd km, started with tougher gears and faster speeds. The initial 14kms were on OK roads with lot of dust, speedbreakers and gravel. The next 6kms were on a really good tar road where my average speed was upward of 27km/hr till the U-turn. Due to rains all night, there were some water logged patches, up to 1ft water. Again, the return leg was the same, with initial 6kms smooth and the the concrete and dusty roads. My target was 100 mins, but finished it in 110 mins, deeply disappointed. An average speed of about 22km/hr.. and I could have done better. The heat played a big part too, with the temperature touching 36 degrees for some time. But all the participants had the same weather, so I should not be complaining. Just need to train better next time.
Average heart rate: 157 bpm, Max 173bpm.

Some pics from the bike phase, from OneGlint.

 

Transition 2 (ride ends, run starts) -It was 11am (3hrs 30 mins into the race), and I took 7 mins for the transition. This was a mistake from my end as my practice sessions had a 3 min transition time. I was a little drained, so hydrated well. Lot of improvement needed.

3. The Run was tough. the same route as bike and U-turn at 5th km, with 120m elevation. My usual 10K times are 60-64 mins, but this was 87mins! I walked about 2kms and jogged most of it.. at every aid station, had to pour water on my head. The final KM was a mix of jog and run... finally the finish line was visible and the adrenaline made me sprint. Due to the elevation and the sun, I did feel under-trained as Bangalore weather has been chilly in the past 3 months and maybe my body wasn't trained enough to take the heat. Again, lesson learnt!
Average heart rate: 158 bpm, Max 180bpm.

I had planned to finish the event between 4 hr 30min to 4 hr 45 min... but was 9 mins slower than planned, to finish the event at 4h: 54m: 41 sec....But the happiness of completing the race was more than anything else.

My wife was there at the finish line waiting for me to complete this new adventure. She was soo happy to see me finish that she didn't change the settings on her camera and clicked some really funny pics. Yes, this is me!!!

Post crossing the finish line, the thoughts in my mind - Wow, finally a Triathlete.. Why did i even sign up for this?... How do these Ironman / Half Ironman people manage to do their distances in such short time? Why is Hyderabad so hot? and finally.. Did I eat less Biryani yesterday?

The answer maybe, was, to train better!!!!!

Up next was the photoshoot (my wife got her DSLR), and we spent some time capturing the happy moments till I gathered the energy to drive back to my friend Jawahar's home.

Finished the triathlon at 1230, and left for Bangalore at 1830 for an 8 hour drive.

Some pics:

  

Summarizing the entire event, though it was not as challenging as a half ironman or an ironman distance, this was certainly a test for someone with my fitness levels. And a true eye-opener with respect to the areas of improvement across the three disciplines.
Firstly, I would like to thank a lot of you for the support, guidance and inspiration. Hope the blog didn't bore you much!
Secondly, feel free to comment, give tips and feedback.
Thirdly, if you are not into this sport & wish to get into triathlons, I am just a call away.

Gear:
Tri Suit by Joma
Running jacket by Kalenji
Garmin Fenix 2
Asics Patriot 7 shoes
Performax cap
Btwin Triban 3 road bike (Specialized tyre front and Schwalbe Lugano rear )
Cateye Velo 7 cyclocomputer

Special Mention:
Srikanth Desikachar for the Tri-related Tips
Asutosh Bellur for the Cycling Tips
Dr. Kevin Agarwal  & Dr. Sitaram Sunderesan - my physiotherapists
& the most important, Mithila for the super support forever.

I missed attending my best bud Vaishak Shetty's Engagement so that I could participate in this event. Though, he will never forgive me for this, I can now proudly say I did it for you dude!


Frequently Asked Questions to me:
1.) Is it tough?
A - Yes! It is definitely tough. Lot of commitment and discipline needed.

2.) I don't know how to swim that much / yet to learn swimming, can I attempt?
A - Frankly, Triathlons are in open waters. I only know pool based swimming, so i cant answer this, But hey, you can also train for pool based triathlons to begin with.

3.) It looks like an expensive sport.
A- Yes, the investments are higher in a triathlon. A bike, swimming memberships / training, proper gear, good shoes, nutrition, hydration, etc all add to the expenses. Plus as against running, here there are 3 disciplines (Swim, Bike, Run), so the expenses are three times on an average! But with proper planning, one can still learn and do a triathlon successfully. 


Finally, I can call myself a TRIATHLETE



Other Info: 
Route Maps:
Bike Route  & Run Route 
Event website: http://www.hyderabadtriathlon.com/

Free Training Plans (adjust basis your schedule and current level of fitness)
220triathlon.com
active.com