Author: carlywen

I’m learning the hard way how important it is to do things properly and efficiently. I had a pretty intense swim session last night and I am not a technical swimmer at all. Because of that, my shoulders were incredibly sore. It’s amazing how seemingly small corrections can make a huge difference. I’ve even been watching help videos on YouTube. How did people know how to do things before the internet???

I’m getting back into my routine again. I started my education practicum last week so I’ve been teaching. I’m at the school every day by 7:45am and stay until 4. When I get home, it’s a couple more hours of lesson planning. It’s pretty much a guarantee that I’ll fall asleep on the bus and when I get home I can’t sit down because I know I’ll fall asleep

Tonight I went to my first spin class ever at the Birdcoop. It was actually the first time I’ve ever set foot in the Birdcoop. Personally, I can’t stand gyms. They’re cold and sterile and have way too much metal in them. We live in the most comfortable climate in Canada and one of the most beautiful cities in the world, why on earth would you want to be inside??

The thought of riding a bike that doesn’t actually go anywhere is bizarre to me; I feel the same way about treadmills. You’re using up so much time and energy but you’re not going anywhere…  

The swim is what I’m most worried about in the triathlon. Like I mentioned in my first post, I haven’t swum laps in over 10 years. I’m more of a “treader” than a swimmer. I can swim to the dock in a lake, to the other side of a river, but any further than that I’d rather use a boat.

My first day in the pool was probably the most disheartening day of my training so far. I was really excited to get in the water; I even brought a swim cap and goggles. Apparently looking like you know what you’re doing doesn’t actually influence your ability…

I joined a Monday night running clinic with a friend through LadySport and decided that instead of doing the 10k training like most of the women in the clinic, I’d do the half marathon training. Apparently I’m slightly masochistic but running the BMO half marathon in May has been something I’ve wanted to do for a while so I thought I’d combine the training.

Last night was our second clinic and my motivation level to go for a run was at negative 5. It was cold, it was raining, and I had about ten other excuses as well. But, I realized that if I didn’t go for a run I wouldn’t have anything to post about today. So, begrudgingly, I went and ran 9km.

I’ve taken on quite possibly the ballsiest challenge of my life so far: completing a triathlon. Why the hell am I doing this? After all, it was only September when I stood on the shores of English Bay watching my boyfriend compete in the Vancouver Triathlon in the pouring rain, thinking to myself “I have absolutely no desire to ever do this.” Yet, here we are, just four months later and I’m already registered for TriDu.

When I started at UBC many years ago, I honestly thought that the TriDu was an event I would never compete in. I’ve done Longboat, Storm the Wall, even On the Button Bonspiel, but I never saw myself ever completing a triathlon. I hadn’t swum (I forgot how stupid of a word “swum” is) laps in a pool since completing my maroon swimming badge and I’m pretty sure that was around when TLC’s “Waterfalls” was released. As for biking, I don’t think I had been on a bike that actually moved forward longer than five minutes in well over ten years. (It’s not true what they say you know, you can forget how to ride a bicycle and I have the bruises to prove it.)  Wow, now that I’m visualizing my complete lack of experience, it’s making it a lot harder for me to explain why I’m doing this…