Triathlon is the thing you should try!

A combination of swimming, cycling, and running gets the adrenaline pumping like nothing else, except maybe telemark skiing. The cross training of each activity is more helpful than having one sport to rely on heavily. However, having three sports requires more training, if you’re up to it. Personally, the cycling is my favorite of the three sports because of the thrill of riding fast downhills, and the mental toughness required to push up the hills harder.

Boulder Sprint Triathlon 2009 Boulder Reservoir

To be enjoyed, cycling requires the proper equipment. If you can’t handle being seen around in biking shorts then you don’t deserve to be on the road. With the right biking shorts, you can explore anywhere that you want. The limit at which you can ride is far greater than running. Plus, you get to carry a water bottle along with you!

Running is my second favorite part of the triathlon, partly because I have been decent at running since elementary school. To start on a running program, it takes patience to not push yourself too hard at first. The soreness you get from the first week goes away within the next few if you keep up the running routine. If you are starting a running program, START SLOW! Enter into a race so that you have a goal. Build up until your race, with longer and slower workouts as opposed to quick time-saving sprint workouts. The end result? Stronger muscles that help you pull through that last mile of the 5K.

The swim part of the triathlon is my least favorite. I learned how to swim when I was 8 on the Rock Creek Flyers, and did OK in my age group. But I thought the swim team ate up too much of my time in the summer, so I did not continue swimming the next summer. Now I am sixteen and considering joining the Louisville Dolphins just to get a few weeks of kick-your-ass workouts to prepare me for some triathlons next season. I competed in the Boulder Sprint Triathlon and got 3rd in my age group this summer. The reason I wasn’t higher up in the standing was because of my pitiful swim time. I need to improve.

If you think you can handle all three sports, then start training and set yourself a goal by signing up for a triathlon! This is a fun way to do endurance type workouts.

If you don’t think you can handle all of this working out, maybe you will get the ultimate addiction to Ultimate Frisbee.

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