Triathlon Training
Reported June 12, 2007
ORLANDO, Fla. (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) — Lance Armstrong used the Tour de France to make a comeback and beat cancer. But he’s not the only one.
This isn’t just a jog. It’s more than a bike ride. It’s bigger than a dip in the pool. For Holly McCann, triathlons are about survival. Three years ago, she started the fight of her life against stage-four non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
“Im kind of waiting for that five year mark to be, quote, cured and healthy and normal,” Holly says.
Colleen Wilson is a training coach with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training program. She says, whatever your motivation for taking on an endurance sport, don’t do it alone.
“Ive done a marathon alone, and its not fun. It wasnt fun at all. When I joined up with a team, it was much better,” Colleen says. And you don’t have to start off in shape! “Ive seen it before, people who say, ‘I cant believe Im going to do this; Im not really an athlete, but I just want to try to finish an endurance event,'” she says.
If you’re thinking about trying an endurance sport, you’ll need to start preparing at least four months in advance. You should try to get used to training the amount of time you’ll be in the race, but the max you should train in a day is seven hours. Equipment? A more aerodynamic handle bar will make you faster. And the best bike investment you can make is a good set of wheels.
The number one thing any triathlete needs, more important than shoes, bikes, or swimsuits? Motivation.
“It chokes me up about it, because its very personal to me, but I just know going over that finish line, its just going to be amazing,” Holly says.
Holly was training for a triathlon that’s a 1.5-K swim, 58-K bike ride, and a 10-K run. For a better deal on a new bike, buy in the mid- to late-summer, when many shops slash prices on last year’s models to make room for new models.
If you would like more information, please contact:
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
3319 Maguire Blvd., Suite 101
Orlando, FL 32803
(407) 898-0733