Was just thinking about how doing Triathlons is so damned rewarding.
So here goes; the pros and cons of triathlon. Chime in!
Good:
-
You **can** get better with age -
If you weren’t good at a sport when you were younger, you can do pretty good in all three -
Racing against your age group vs overall makes you feel like you can progress -
You can absolutely identify with the race experience of a pro versus yourself. -
Good excuse to travel -
Training makes the rest of your work day seem easy. Likely 99.9% of people never know what it is like to suffer doing a 100IM. Doing the fly feels like drowning. To conquer that in the middle of the day during your swim workout – nothing else that you do that day even compares. The rest of the day is relatively easy! -
Training while swimming, biking, running, helps clear your head. Makes you better at your "day job". -
Training with others forms deep relationships and introspection -
Training with others who are faster teaches you. -
Training with others who are slower allows you to teach.
-
There are so many things to keep your head in the game; heart rate, power, split times, gadgets/new gear, friends/teams you train with
-
You appreciate and think about your fuel – what you eat and drink.
-
You bonk. Again, likely 99.9% of the population has never felt this
-
You recover from the bonk
-
You hurt – badly. But you recover
-
You set incremental goals – and achieve them. Likely there is nothing else that compares – in life – to the incremental satisfaction you can get from training for a tri.
-
A race is the most focused experience you will likely have in your life. Nothing else compares to the absolute focus on what your mind and your body are doing at this very minute.
-
Thank goodness there is Strava. Because when you post your workouts on Facebook, no one cares.
-
It’s something you can always return to. And it is always rewarding.
-
Being a weight-weenie or an aero-weenie
-
You are faster than someone else
-
There is always someone faster than you
Bad:
-
There is pretty much nothing as self-involved as being a triathlete; triathletes are selfish. -
Hard for non-triathletes to really compare / empathize -
You have a blog. No one cares; others don’t want to read your blog -
Triathletes are oblivious and terrible group cyclists -
You will get injured -
At some point, you will have to stretch, do Yoga or Pilates and get a frequent massage. Might even have to do strength training. -
Your family and friends will have to put up with you. -
It’s an expensive sport. -
No one really cares, except you – and maybe a very select group of training partners – how well you did in a race. It can be a hollow victory. -
Being a weight-weenie or an aero-weenie
-
You spend too much time on Slowtwitch!