by IronGirl » Tue Oct 01, 2013 4:56 pm
Warwickshire Sprint Triathlon Sunday 29th September (8 months after Diagnosis)
35th/250 women, 5th in my age category ,believe you me I'm not posting the times, I really don't care at the moment.
The main thing is I DID IT. I thought I would cry, but just seem to wander around in disbelief at the end.
It has been hard, very hard. I just remember getting on the turbo a few months ago, because moving reduced the pain. It's been one hell of a year, but the mind is a very strange thing and this just doesn't seem real any more.
Yesterday there were "no issues", I even managed to jog from the pool to T1 barefoot!! I'd planned on walking that bit, it was my only worry, but there was a big crowd out supporting which spurred me on. 1400 competitors in about 6 races (sprints, super-sprints and relays).
SWIM: A very odd pool swim. We had to do 4 lengths in each of 3 lanes. Mmm yes we moved lanes during the swim?? Never done that in 15 years of triathlon.
T1: as I say I managed to trot through which made my day......sounds trivial but it's actually HUGE. I have had problems with T1 for a couple of years, running barefoot that is, so I just wonder if there has been some low level inflammatory thing been going on for a while.
BIKE: On the whole a good, flat, scenic in parts bike course. However I'm amazed the Police allow this triathlon to take place. The first 2/3 mile and last 2/3 mile go through the centre of Stratford Upon Avon by the side of lines of traffic. Most were leaving a gap so cyclists could get through, but no way was I getting on aerobars and zooming through. It was like going through rush hour commuting traffic. The rest of the course was fun, we were being set off at 15 second intervals, so I had a great game of catch.
T2: Felt sluggish in T2, more so than I did on a practice run that I had 2 weeks ago. I put it down to being on my time trial bike, which hits my quads hard when I push the pace. Obvious solution is to do what I normally do and train on the thing.
Run: Moving OK but sluggish. Seemed to build into it as time went on. Grinning like a Cheshire cat on the last lap.
Nothing else matters today because I WON, I BEAT REACTIVE ARTHRITIS, I KICKED IT IN THE BUTT!!!
I'm still on the drugs, not sure for how long or whether it's permanent. I really hope not, they are nasty. I have monthly blood tests to check that they are not damaging me. Good news this month was that my Haemoglobin is up, which is good because this drug generally pushes it down. Yay for Kale I say. So I'm still being very careful, I'm allowing lots and lots of recovery due to the effects of the drug. The sessions are gradually getting longer and harder, so I think training for something next year will be possible. I'm just not sure what that something is yet. But it's a flipping good problem to have, boy o boy is it.