My First Tri... getting nervous

Rest up and focus on beating that stomach bug!

There's not much you can do training-wise in the final week, anyway

Good luck!

relax, have fun. You will do great.

Rest and you will be fine. Good luck. Sounds like you beat the bug and you're ready-

You still have plenty of time. There isn't much exercise that will really benefit you at this point anyways. Rest, Get Better. You should feel better just in time for the nervousness to set in.

I seem to always get sick the last week before a rest. As others noted, not much training you can do now to help with the race, so just take the illness as extra motivation to taper. Rest up, get healthy, and look forward to having a great day! Good luck.

This is my first year too. I've only done a couple of sprints but I'd say it's safe to say, we all get nervous before a race.

A few things I'd suggest:

1) Get everything you will need (use a checklist if necessary) packed and organized the day before the race...don't want to scramble around and end up forgetting goggles, etc... in a rush to get out the door.

2) Transitions seem easy until you try to do them with all the excitement going on and an elevated heart rate....practice until you are fairly efficient (and keep your transition space as clutter free as possible).

3) Pace your swim and bike so you have something left for the run.

I think you're going to love it..race day is pretty exciting!

Good luck and have fun.

Just swim easy, like you've trained.

Go all out on the bike!

Hang on for the run.

Enjoy the feeling when you finish!

Find and sign up for the next one!

Have fun

You're going to be great. If you've had a stomach bug, make sure you're hydrating well...you don't want to get stuck behind the curve of multi day dehydration.
Don't forget to do a Race Report, and smile a lot, so that you'll want to share the pictures!

I was sick the week before my first tri which was a ~17 mile sprint. I was slow but I got through it. You will too! Just make to drink alot of water and stay well hydrated. I was so completely dehydrated it was awful.

I'm no pro but my advice is to keep loose and pace yourself. My first race i went out a little fast and tried to keep up with some others in my group. Don't rush, run your race and enjoy it. there will be a lot of support.

Good luck.

Take it easy on the swim. Remember to breathe from the get go or you can really set yourself back from the beginning. Worry more about your form and breathing than your time on the swim especially if you don't have experience swimming with a mob in open water.

I sabotaged my 1st tri by going nuts on the swim- didn't remember to breathe for too long while fighting the group (positioned myself front and center in a heat of about 60+). Completely disregarded any sense of form and swam horribly inefficient. Came out of the water with a slow time, completely exhausted and never really recovered.

My 2nd tri: Started off to the side, started at a fair pace, set my form and remembered to breathe. Quickly found my groove and increased pace. Came out of the water fresh and killed the bike.

Edited by Portlander 2013-07-18 10:38 PM

plus 1 for the keep well hydrated and use the time to practice transitions. All good advice above - just go and enjoy the feeling of doing your first tri - it only happens once!!

I'd say swim leg is the most "interesting" part of a triathlon. There are less "interaction" on the bike and run. My most vivid memory of my first triathlon was a quadruple kick on the face at the swim start! I drank half of the ocean and breast/doggy stroke the whole swim. But I fully enjoy the race!

Hope you have a great race and remember to carry a smile on your face no matter how hard it gets. You'd be surprise how many photos you can find around the internet.

This is excellent advice! I can just picture the poorly prepared running around all over in the transition looking for the way out. Really put some serious thought into your transition layout and practice the steps in T1 and T2. Go over the sequence in your mind as you try to go to sleep the night before.

Put your helmet on your handlebars so you can't forget to put it on before pulling your bike.

If you are putting on socks in T1 have a small towel to dry your feet real quick and put the socks on before the race then neatly roll them off your foot- that way instead of yanking them onto a wet foot you simply unroll them onto it.

There are some you tube videos with advice on transitions.

Edited by Portlander 2013-07-19 3:08 AM

Thanks everyone! Felt much better this weekend and did one final long ride to try out my tri shorts (since I have been practicing in very padded bike shorts). They worked out well... so here we go!

4 days to go...

I have a list of items to take with me. We are arriving the evening before the race to pick up my packet, eat dinner, and get to bed early. Im traveling with all my tri gear in a big bag (separate from my travel bag) so it will all make it there without issue and will be ready to go. I know several friends who are racing but most likely we will not be in the same waves... they aren't new to this. I am nervous but very excited and already starting to look into my what race I may try out next.

Here goes nothing....

So glad to hear you're feeling better! Very smart to pack your tri gear separate from your regular-life gear. Though your friends won't be in the same wave, it will still be a comfort knowing that you've got that support heading into this thing.

Best of luck to you.

I just did my first tri. Best advice I can give is watch yourself at the start of the bike leg. Adrenaline will be pumping, and it's very easy to not notice how fast you are going and burn yourself out before the run leg. Aim for negative splits and something left in the tank.

A more experienced friend of mine says triathlons are won on the run. But I discovered on Saturday that the run is won on the bike.